RICHFIELD TOWNSHIP BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEETING
September 1, 2005
7:00 p.m.

The Richfield Township Board of Trustees met for their regular meeting on September 1, 2005 with the following in attendance:

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

A motion was made by Ms. Gilmore and seconded by Mr. Wyatt to approve the minutes of July 21 and August 4 as amended. The motion passed with unanimous approval.

A motion was made by Ms. Gilmore and seconded by Ms. Cica-Mraz to approve warrants 11423 to 11482. The motion passed with unanimous approval.

Ms. Pinney inquired about opening a line of funding for the BCAM property (Howard Johnson’s) annexation legal costs. The trustees do not feel this will be an ongoing matter, so the payment should be made out of general legal spending. The invoice will be returned to legal counsel for correction.

Mr. Canter provided the Police report. The department has received ten portable radios, which were funded by the Mihalick estate bequest. The two new police cars have been equipped and marked and will be on the road next week. The department has received their remote controls for the gate at Rising Valley Park. The open lanes on Brecksville Road will be switched on September 2, to keep up with the progress of construction. The contractor is currently ahead of schedule. The collective bargaining discussion will likely go to mediation. A meeting has been set for September 9 to choose a mediator, but the two sides are not far from agreement. A reminder that the Veterans’ Memorial dedication will be held on September 11 at 1:00 p.m. and the public is invited to attend. The calls in August were 711 primary calls for the Village of Richfield and 115 primary calls for Richfield Township. Ms. Bowmer has received printouts of the township call summaries.

Mr. Stopak provided the Fire report. In August, there were 95 total calls, with the Village of Richfield having 50 EMS and 21 fire and Richfield Township having 11 EMS and 9 fire. There were 4 mutual aid calls in August. The department is receiving quotes on new trucks. They are planning on participating in the NIMS (National Incident Management System), and will be offering a course on universal reporting language that is required for grant funding. The department has received 22 portable radios, funded through FEMA grants, with the required 10% co-pay coming from the Mihalick estate bequest. Their collective bargaining discussion will also likely go to mediation.

The Zoning report was provided by Ms. Pinney. Eight zoning certificates were issued in August, with four for new residences & two each for decks and accessory building additions. YTD certificates issued are 72 with 40 for new residences. The next scheduled BZA meeting is September 19, 7:00, with a filing deadline of September 2. There are no continued or pending cases at this time. Recent resolutions have granted approval at the August meeting for Case 531, to allow temporary use & area variance for a project site in a C-2 district during the I271 bridge project; for Case 532, to allow a temporary use variance for storage of empty trailers on a site in the LI-O district and for Case 533, to allow a conditional use in an R-4 district for a single family lot under 1 acre. Case 534 was withdrawn, with the Board recommending that the Trustees approve a refund of the $300 application fee. The next scheduled Zoning Commission meeting is September 8, 6:30 p.m., at the township office. Amendments are in process for the addition of language regarding entryway structures. Recent action was taken on proposed amendments to fence regulations in all residential districts and parking regulations in the R-3 & R- 4 districts and the proposals have been sent to Summit County Planning Commission for review. Current and future Work will be on amendment to the LI-O district language, to clarify application and review requirements. The next scheduled Summit County Planning Commission meeting is September 22, 4:30 p.m. The Glencairn Forest, Woods area, phase 4, will be under review for final plat approval and has met township requirements for parking, but was withdrawn from the August agenda at the request of councilman Nick Kostandaras, due to storm water runoff issues. The amendments proposed by the Zoning Commission at their August 11 meeting will also be reviewed. The August 18 NPDES Phase II/ PIPE meeting was hosted by Copley Township and was attended by Trustee Gilmore. The next meeting is scheduled for September 15, location to be announced.

The Parks report was provided by Mr. Wyatt. The Rising Valley Park is in good shape; the mylar for the lot split has been signed and will be processed as soon as the Department of the Interior grants approval for the ownership changes.

The Road report was provided by Ms. Gilmore. The Riding Run paving project is complete. Fill dirt left from the department’s ditching is available for pickup at the Boston Mills Road service yard. Trash collection will be delayed one day next week, due to the Labor Day holiday and the signs reminding residents of the delay will go up on the 2nd.

The Administration report was provided by Ms. Bowmer. One of the large Richfield Township signs was stolen in August and has still not been returned. The state has erected a new metal “entering Richfield Township” sign. The trustees will take a look at the state sign to determine if they want to replace the stolen sign. If the stolen sign is dropped off at the police department, no questions will be asked. Letters have gone out to current zoning board members and ads were run in the Richfield Times and West Side Leader for new applicants. The deadline to submit an application for a zoning board position is September 16. Regarding the Adelphia/Time Warner issue, Bath Township Administrator Bill Snow has contacted legal counsel Walter & Haverfield, LLP, who have written letters regarding deficiencies in the proposed agreement.

In New Business, a motion was made by Ms. Gilmore and seconded by Mr. Wyatt to refund Mr. Merrick’s BZA application fee for Case 534-05, under the recommendation of the BZA members. The motion passed with unanimous approval.

A motion was made by Ms. Gilmore and seconded by Ms. Cica-Mraz to approve Resolution #12-2005, Adoption of the National Incident Management System (NIMS). The motion passed with unanimous approval.

J & J Refuse has requested an increase in the contract rate. The trustees want to check whether recyclables go through the transfer station before they take action to approve any increase. They will consider the request again at their September 15 meeting.

Anderson Drilling & Pump have sent a proposal to drill a water well at the Boston Mills service yard. The estimate for a 105’ deep well is $2885.00, not including a pump. A motion to hire Anderson Drilling & Pump to drill a well, with the pump chosen and installed at a future date, for an amount not to exceed $3500.00 was made by Mr. Wyatt, seconded by Ms. Cica-Mraz and received unanimous approval.

Gramley Home Improvement has sent a proposal to rough out the building addition at the Boston Mills Road service yard. The estimate to do rough construction and concrete is $18,700. The road department employees plan on doing most of the finish work on the addition before the snowplow season starts. A motion was made by Ms. Gilmore and seconded by Mr. Wyatt to approve hiring Gramley Home Improvement for an amount not to exceed $18,700 for the Boston Mills service yard building 14’ by 40’ addition. The motion passed with unanimous approval.

A motion was made by Ms. Gilmore and seconded by Mr. Wyatt to approve spending of up to $5000.00 for materials related to the Service Yard building addition. The clerk will open a purchase order in the amount of $5000.00 to allow Terry Lumber Company to lock in the quoted price for materials. The motion passed with unanimous approval

BZA member Mike Fremon has turned in his resignation, effective the end of this year. He is planning on being out of the country for an extended period and will not be available for Board meetings. A motion was made by Mr. Wyatt and seconded by Ms. Gilmore that Mr. Fremon’s resignation by accepted with the condition that if a case is continued from the December 2005 meeting, that Mr. Fremon continue with his Board appointment until the resolution of that case, if he is able. The motion passed with unanimous approval.

Ms. Pinney has been called for jury duty, beginning on September 19. A motion was made by Mr. Wyatt and seconded by Ms. Gilmore to allow Ms. Pinney to receive her regular pay while on jury service and to keep the pay provided by the jury service to offset costs associated with travel and parking while on jury duty. The motion passed with unanimous approval.

Citizen’s Forum – None

A motion was made by Ms. Gilmore and seconded by Mr. Wyatt at 8:00 p.m. to go into executive session to discuss pending litigation and land acquisition. The motion passed with unanimous approval.

A motion was made by Ms. Gilmore and seconded by Mr. Wyatt at 9:00 p.m. to go out of executive session. The motion passed with unanimous approval.

A motion was made to authorize Buckingham, Doolittle & Burroughs, LLP to execute a consent judgment entry consistent with the proposed consent judgment entry language reviewed in executive session. The proposed agreement is with the Mr. & Mrs. Zebrowski of 4796 Alger Road, who have been cited for allowing a commercial topsoil business to operate on their residential property. The motion passed with unanimous approval.

A motion to adjourn was made at 9:15 by Ms. Gilmore, seconded by Mr. Wyatt and received unanimous approval.

This page last updated on: 02/25/2006

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