The regular meeting of the Rootstown Township Trustees opened at 5:35 p.m. on May 10, 2011. Those in attendance were Trustees Brett Housley, Bonnie Howe and Diane Dillon, JoAnn Townend, Fiscal Officer, Chief Charles Palmer, Jim Mahood, Van Black, and Julie Gonzales.

Resolution No. 2011-078 – Motion was made by Diane Dillon and seconded by Bonnie Howe to accept the minutes of April 26, 2011. Upon roll call the vote as follows: Diane Dillon, yea, Bonnie Howe, yea, Brett Housley, yea.

ROAD SUPERINTENDENT REPORT

Bonnie reported the equipment is running smoothly. The Road Crew has been mowing and patching Lynn and Rootstown Roads.

Bonnie will get more information on the policy for reflective road signs to be effective January 1, 2012.

ZONING INSPECTOR REPORT

Resolution No. 2011-079 – Motion was made by Diane Dillon and seconded by Bonnie Howe to allow Jim Mahood and any members of the Zoning Commission interested in attending the Oil and Gas Regulations and Internet Café Seminar on July 29th in Canton at a cost not to exceed $45.00 per person. Upon roll call the vote as follows: Diane Dillon, yea, Bonnie Howe, yea, Brett Housley, yea.

Resolution No. 2011-080 – Motion was made by Diane Dillon and seconded by Bonnie Howe to hire Troy Cutright as a part-time on-call employee of the Road Department at a rate of $12.00 per hour. Upon roll call the vote as follows: Diane Dillon, yea, Bonnie Howe, yea, Brett Housley, yea.

There were five (5) acts of business.

1. 2 commercial
2. 1 addition to home
3. 1 deck
4. 1 shed
5. 1 Mylar signed

Jim sent out a violation letter to a resident on Tallmadge Road.

Resolution No. 2011-081 – Motion was made by Bonnie Howe and seconded by Diane Dillon to purchase a computer for the Zoning Department from Aloha Computers at a cost not to exceed $ 500.00. (Operating system CD, dual-core processor, 2GB memory, 500 Gb hard drive, CD/DVD burner, 8 USB ports, dual DVI video, VGA video, Avast anti-virus, Office 2000 suite, Windows 7 OS.) This does not include a monitor, mouse or keyboard. Upon roll call the vote as follows: Diane Dillon, yea, Bonnie Howe, yea, Brett Housley, yea.

Jim spoke to Brimfield, Randolph and Ravenna Townships regarding a zoning permit fee for drilling. He reported that none of these townships has a fee schedule in place. Jim is in contact with Chris Meduri to see if townships can regulate drilling. He spoke to a representative from Chesapeake Energy informing them they need to speak with him before drilling can take place.

There will not be Zoning Board of Appeals meeting this month.

FIRE CHIEF REPORT

The fire department participated in two events at NEOUCOM. The staff was at the First Annual HOPE Walks 5K run/walk and last week the crew attended the Annual Health Fair displaying the equipment and safety materials.

Chief Palmer received the abstract driving records from the State of Ohio as required by our insurance carrier.

Chief Palmer reported the elevator in the fire department is out of service. The hydraulic cylinder needs repaired. Chief Palmer received the following quotes.

1. Otis Elevator - $3,986.62
2. Schindler Elevator - $2,994.00

Resolution No. 2011-082 – Motion was made by Diane Dillon and seconded by Bonnie Howe to hire Schindler Elevator to repair the elevator at the fire department in an amount not to exceed $2,994.00. Upon roll call the vote as follows: Diane Dillon, yea, Bonnie Howe, yea, Brett Housley, yea.

Resolution No. 2011-083 – Motion was made by Diane Dillon and seconded by Bonnie Howe to hire Matt Hendrickson (replacing Jeff Tyler) as a full-time firefighter/paramedic effective May 16, 2011. Upon roll call the vote as follows: Diane Dillon, yea, Bonnie Howe, yea, Brett Housley, yea.

Public Hearing - ZC-2010-003 - Section 390.06 W Two-Family Dwellings

6:10 PM Brett Housley opened the public hearing

The proposed amendment has been reviewed and approved by the Portage County Regional Planning Commission and by Chris Meduri, Portage County Prosecutor’s Office.

The Zoning Commission proposed:

Existing:

W. Two-family Dwelling Units shall comply with the following:

1. Two-family units may be approved in location where the proposed site is within 300 feet of an existing two-family dwelling, or a non-single-family residential district.

Proposed: (shown in bold)

W. Two-family Dwelling Units shall comply with the following:

1. Two-family units may be approved in location where the proposed site is within 300 feet 150 feet of an existing two-family dwelling, or a non-single-family residential district.

Rationale: As recommended in the Comprehensive Land Use Plan of 2004 so the units blend into the existing setting in terms of size, bulk and design.

After discussion the Board agreed to adopt the following resolution:

Resolution No. 2011-084 – Motion was made by Bonnie Howe and seconded by Diane Dillon to deny the Zoning Commissions recommendation to amend Section 390.06 W. of the Zoning Resolution changing the existing footage of 300 feet to 150 feet of an existing two-family dwelling or non-single-family residential district. Upon roll call the vote as follows: Diane Dillon, yea, Bonnie Howe, yea, Brett Housley, yea.

The Trustees appreciates the hard work and dedication the Zoning Commission does but feels this amendment is not needed at this time.

6:20 PM Brett Housley closed the meeting.

Resolution No. 2011-085 – Motion was made by Brett Housley and seconded by Bonnie Howe for the Rootstown Township Trustees to move into executive session at 6:21 PM to discuss personnel issues. Also present: Chief Chuck Palmer. Upon roll call the vote as follows: Diane Dillon, yea, Bonnie Howe, yea, Brett Housley, yea.

Resolution No. 2011-086 - Upon conclusion of the above referenced discussion a motion was made by Diane Dillon and seconded by Bonnie Howe that the Rootstown Township Trustees move out of executive session at 6:35 PM. Upon roll call the vote as follows: Diane Dillon, yea, Bonnie Howe, yea, Brett Housley, yea.

After exiting Executive Session, the Trustees took no action.

Diane presented the Board information regarding Connect-Cty Service, a telephone emergency notification system for our community.

Resolution No. 2011-087 – Motion was made by Brett Housley and seconded by Bonnie Howe to enter into an agreement with Connect-Cty Service to provide Rootstown Township residents a first alert telephone emergency communication system at a cost not to exceed $9,100.00 per year. Upon roll call the vote as follows: Diane Dillon, yea, Bonnie Howe, yea, Brett Housley, yea.

Diane Dillon will contact Ryan Nash, representative of Connect-Cty.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS

The Board agreed to not allow employees to sell back vacation time.

Diane is still checking on creating an account for the Township on Facebook.

NEW BUSINESS

The City of Ravenna and Tallmadge has been in contact with the Trustees to possibly develop a JEDD with the Township. The Board discussed the option and has also asked for legal counsel from Chris Meduri. The Board has invited representatives from both cities to attend a meeting. The Trustees agreed that they are not interested in developing a JEDD; should their decision change, they will contact each representative.

The Board discussed Senate Bill 5.

The Board received an e-mail from Claudia James, Portage County Regional Planning Commission regarding Rootstown Water Company request for federal funding. The Board would like detailed plans and agreed they have no initial objection to the project at this time. Brett will be attending the RPC meeting tomorrow and will notify Claudia.

Brett will contact Burnham & Flowers regarding the renewal of health benefits for the Township.

FISCAL OFFICER

Resolution No. 2011-088 - Motion by Diane Dillon and seconded by Bonnie Howe to pay bills on file with the Fiscal Officer. Upon roll call the vote as follows: Diane Dillon, yea, Bonnie Howe, yea, Brett Housley, yea.

Brett would like to attend a Local Government Legislation, which would have new issues for attorneys. The cost is $300.00. He will get more information.

Resolution No. 2011–089 - Motion by Brett Housley to adjourn at 7:40 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

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Brett Housley, Chairman

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JoAnn Townend, Fiscal Officer