RICHFIELD TOWNSHIP BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEETING
March 3, 2005
7:00 p.m.

The Richfield Township Board of Trustees opened their regular meeting at 7:10 p.m. on March 3, 2005 with the following in attendance:

Laurie Peters Gilmore, Trustee Chairperson
David Wyatt, Trustee Vice Chairperson
Shano Cica-Mraz, Trustee
Laurie Pinney, Clerk
Linda Bowmer, Township Administrator
Dale Canter, Richfield Police
Joe Stopak, Richfield Fire
Three residents

A motion was made by Ms. Gilmore and seconded by Mr. Wyatt to approve the minutes of February 17, 2005. The motion passed with unanimous approval.

A motion was made by Ms. Gilmore and seconded by Ms. Cica-Mraz to approve warrant report items 11141 to 11174 with 11159 to 11161 voided due to misprinting. The motion passed with unanimous approval.

The Police report was provided by Mr. Canter. The department has developed a system that should more reliably track the police calls. The new system only considers primary offenses. In February, there were 1531 total calls and 785 primary offense calls in the village and township. Ninety-two, or 12% of those calls were in the township. Jeffrey Revlock has been selected for training as a negotiator for the metro swat team. The department has adopted a policy of sending one officer for training programs and then that officer conducts training for the rest of the department. They are trying to train on about six topics per year using this method.

The Fire report was provided by Mr. Stopak. In February, there were 93 total calls, with 39 being village ems, 21 being village fire, 17 township ems and 6 township fire. There were 10 mutual aid calls and 32 inspections, with 29 in the village and 3 in the township. Also, there were 6 new construction inspections, with no new construction inspections in the township. There was a discussion of charges for fire alarms in excess of 3 during any calendar year. The village does not have a resolution to collect for police false alarms, so they are unable to charge for both fire and police false alarms. The trustees suggested that we put together a draft resolution for charges for false alarms and for ems services and send it to the prosecutor for review.

The Zoning report was provided by Ms. Cica-Mraz. The trustees have had discussions with the Urban Design Group regarding recommendations for the proposed Briarwood subdivision. The NPDES Phase 2 annual report is ready for submittal. A motion was made by Ms. Gilmore and seconded by Ms. Cica-Mraz to authorize the submittal of the NPDES Phase 2 Annual Report by Laurie Pinney. The motion passed with unanimous approval.

Ms. Gilmore provided the Road report. COSE has sent a letter, authorizing a reduction in speed limit on Medina Line Road from 55 mph to 45 mph, effective immediately. The paving of Boston Mills Road is still pending. Ms. Bowmer had provided a memo to the trustees regarding the proposed modular building addition to the service building, which was discussed.

The Administration report was provided by Ms. Bowmer. A joint meeting between the Richfields, Bath and the Revere Board of Education is scheduled for March 10 at 8:30 a.m. A school levy will be on the ballot in May and a fact sheet has been received and was distributed. The Ohio Township Association is planning a march on Columbus on March 16 to protest the cuts in the Local Government Fund and Mr. Wyatt and Ms. Bowmer will attend on behalf of Richfield Township. The enrollment period for the gas aggregation program has opened. The current rate is $7.9876 through May, a variable rate from June to October and a fixed guaranteed rate for October through April.

A motion was made by Ms. Gilmore & seconded by Mr. Wyatt to adopt Resolution 04-2005 opposing the proposed Local Government Fund cutbacks proposed by the state. The motion passed with unanimous approval.

A motion was made by Mr. Wyatt & seconded by Ms. Cica-Mraz to adopt Resolution 03-2005 regarding notification requirements for oil and gas projects. The motion passed with unanimous approval.

Ms. Bowmer reported that letters have been received in the township office from representative Sherrod Brown in response to a township request, from Rising Valley Park Chairman Frank Gindraw regarding the new gate at the park and from J & J Refuse regarding the transfer station proposed for Twinsburg Township.

Ms. Gilmore made an announcement that the township had been awarded a $56,000 Community Development Block Grant for a senior citizen septic system upgrade program. Each qualifying applicant will be eligible to receive up to $4500 to repair or replace his or her failing or outdated system. The Healthwatch system will receive funding for $1980, but the senior snowplow funding has been discontinued and it is uncertain whether the township will continue to offer the snowplow service.

A proposal has been received from the Urban Design Group to evaluate the Briarwood subdivision property and develop alternative plans for consideration. A motion was made by Mr. Wyatt and seconded by Ms. Cica-Mraz to spend up to $10,000 for Urban Design Group and Buckingham, Doolittle & Burroughs to allow for the development of plans and associated legal counsel. The motion passed with unanimous approval.

Mr. Wyatt asked whether the Zoning Commission members had expressed any interest in establishing an architectural review board. The members will be queried at the next regular meeting.

A motion was made by Ms. Gilmore and seconded by Ms. Cica-Mraz to adjourn at 9:00 p.m. and passed with unanimous approval.

This page last updated on: 02/25/2006

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