County Declines Participation in Survey on Senior Transportation Needs;
Three Planning Commission Vacancies in December 2024
Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) - September 26, 2024
Meeting Details: The Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) met at 9:30 am on Thursday, September 26, 2024 at the County Administration Building, 12611 Ravenwood Drive, Room B303, Chardon, OH. The meeting was changed from the normal Tuesday meeting due to a planned emergency drill for the Perry Nuclear Plant. The meetings are in-person only, and there are no recordings for the public. An agenda is available in advance via request to the Commissioners’ Clerk and at the meeting. Items discussed at the meeting but not on the agenda are addressed at the end of this report.
Public Comment Policy: Observer Comment: Commissioner Ralph Spidalieri announced at the end of the April 4, 2023 meeting that public comment would be permitted and that a more formal policy would be forthcoming. There was no formal policy introduced today, but public comment was permitted.
Attendance: Present were Commissioners Ralph Spidalieri and James Dvorak. Commissioner Timothy Lennon was absent. Also present were County Administrator Gerry Morgan, Assistant County Administrator Linda Burhenne, Finance Manager Adrian Gorton, and Commissioners' Clerk Christine Blair.
County Representatives: Gina Hofstetter, Director, Community and Economic Development; Matt Granito, Dog Warden; Chuck Tkach, Program Manager, Maintenance; Kathleen Miller, Water Resources Fiscal Specialist; Kelly Bidlack, BOCC Human Resources Specialist, and Jessica Boalt, Director, Office on Aging.
Others in Attendance: Ron Leyde, Chief Deputy Auditor; Pam McMahan, Fiscal Office Manager, Auditor’s Office; Adam Litke, Director, Geauga Public Health and Carolyn Brakey, Geauga Public Health Board member and County Commissioner candidate.
The Pledge of Allegiance was recited and a prayer was offered by Mr. Dvorak.
Minutes: No Minutes were submitted for approval. Observer Comment: Weekly LWVG Observer Reports for BOCC are available online through September 26, 2024, for informational purposes but are not substitutes for approved minutes. Approved BOCC Minutes are posted online here through July 23, 2024.
Administrator’s Report: Mr. Morgan reported on the following actions he took in accordance with Ohio law:
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Approved hiring a full time Recreation and Education Assistant in the Office on Aging.
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Approved hiring a full time Maintenance Worker.
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Approved hiring a part-time Switchboard operator/communications clerk in the Maintenance Department.
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Accepted the resignation of a Custodian in the Maintenance Department and agreed to advertise for that position.
Financial Report: Mr. Gorton received approval for the following:
Observer Note: Monetary figures are stated when they were given in Mr. Goton’s report. In most cases, except for Vouchers, they are not stated.
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Appropriation from the Commissioners from Capital Reserve Fund Phase 2 to Land Purchase Fund to cover encumbrance increases
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Supplemental to the Dog Warden for payroll for year end
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Cash from Water Resources Sewer and Water Fund to Debt Retirement Fund
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Travel for Common Pleas, Engineers, Job and Family Services (JFS) and Probate Court
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Vouchers:
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$30,000 from Community Development to the Ohio Department of Education for the final payment on behalf of the ACE school. Observer Note: See LWVGeauga Report for January 23, 2024 for more information.
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$153,171.01 from the Sheriff’s Office to Motorola Solutions for Vespa 911 software.
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Revenue Certification in the Commissioners Airport construction Fund for additional revenue received in 2024 for the Parallel taxiway project
The Commissioners’ Office received approval for an adjustment of $10.00 to amend the motion from April 11, 2023 to adjust the dollar amount of the change order in the motion to be the correct amount, to read: approve and authorize the President of the Board to execute Change Order #17 increasing the Contract with Donley’s Independence, LLC, for the Geauga County Office Building, GMP Phase #1 and #2, for miscellaneous changes made throughout the building that were not covered in the original contract in the amount of $277,887.00.
The Commissioners’ Office received approval to execute Resolution #24-170 Accepting the Amounts and Rates as Determined by the Budget Commission and Authorizing the Necessary Tax Levies and Certifying them to the County Auditor.
The Community and Economic Development Department received approval to reject all bids submitted for the Chagrin Falls Park Community Center – Roof Replacement Project under Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) #B-F-23-1AZ-1) and to reject all bids for the Maple Leaf Residences – Roof Replacement Project under Community Development Block Grant (CDBG #B-F-23-1AZ-1). Director Hofstetter said that the bid specs were “a little muddy.” She said they will re-bid in the spring.
The Dog Warden’s Office received approval to authorize Matt Granito, Dog Warden to accept and execute the Waiver of Notice of Hearing on Inventory and other necessary documents related to a bequest from the Estate of Beverly May Krueger to the Geauga County Dog Warden to help the dogs at the Dog Shelter and to deposit all funds received into the Dog and Kennel Fund. Mr. Granito expressed his thanks to the Estate and said that the funds (about $70,000) will be used to create additional outside cages with indoor doors. He said the improvements will be in Ms. Krueger’s name.
The Maintenance Department received approval to advertise for Statements of Interest and Qualifications for Professional Design Services related to the Design and Contract Administration to upgrade the Safety Center Roof located at 12450 Merritt Road with responses due on Thursday, October 17, 2024 at 4:00 p.m. Notice of this request for Statements of Interest and Qualifications for Professional Design Services will be advertised on September 27, 2024, October 4, 2024 and on the county website.
The Department of Water Resources received approval for the following:
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To execute Contract Maintenance Form #1 to extend the Contract with Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company for an additional year through June 22, 2025 in the original contract not to exceed the amount of $10,000.00.
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To approve and execute Contract Maintenance Form #1 increasing the Contract with Generator Systems, LLC, to include repairs as needed in the amount of $12,000.00 ($7,000.00 in 2024 for a total of $9,538 and $5,000.00 in 2025 for a total of $7,543) for a revised contract total of $20,296.00. Ms. Miller said that this will enable the contractor to do repairs which does increase the total contract amount. Mr. Dvorak asked how many generators this would cover. Ms. Miller said she would obtain that information and send it to Mr. Dvorak.
The Commissioners’ Office received approval to authorize the President of the Board to execute the Giant Eagle, Incorporated Vaccination Agreement for Geauga County Employees on Healthcare to receive an insurance-covered flu vaccine at the Geauga County Office Building during the Month of October 2024. Mr. Spidalieri asked if there was any cost to the County. Ms. Bidlack said there was no cost but they would be arranging a space for the vaccinations to take place.
The Commissioners’ Office received approval to execute the Request for Partial Payment #12 for Infinity Construction Company, Inc., for the Geauga County Courthouse Expansion GMP Phase #1 and Phase #2 expenses in the amount of $499,468.57.
Mr. Spidalieri asked if this included any overage charges and Mr. Morgan said it did not. It was a regular payment.
Mr. Morgan also reported that the City of Chardon has recently contributed $250,000 towards the cost of the Court House expansion project. Mr. Spidalieri wanted to know how that amount was agreed upon. Mr. Morgan said it represented site work, sewer and water connections. Mr. Morgan said they will be paying more, as agreed in the settlement with the County. Observer Note: The City of Chardon agreed to pay up to $2 million towards the cost of the Court House expansion project for various components of the project.
Not on the Agenda
Hershey Montessori - Yvonne Delgado Thomas, Director of Development for Hershey Montessori, asked the Commissioners to consider making a contribution to infrastructure improvements through funding sources available to the Commissioners. She said they had made that request also in 2022. Observer Note: Ms. Thomas appeared to be asking for consideration for ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act) funds although she did not specifically mention ARPA. Ms. Thomas emphasized the unique nature of Hershey Montessorri’s Huntsburg campus which is a “farm school.” See their website here. Mr. Dvorak said that he had gone out to the Huntsberg campus to speak with students about local government a few years ago. There was no other response from the Commissioners.
NOACA (Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency) Survey for the Office on Aging - Director Jessica Boalt told the Commissioners that she had been asked by
NOACA to participate in a survey of seniors regarding transportation needs of seniors. The survey is being administered by a consulting firm RLS & Associates. Ms. Boalt said that the reason for the survey was to identify what is available, to find gaps in service and recommend approaches to transportation for Seniors. She said that Geauga County could apply for grants through funds that could go through NOACA for Transportation. She said they do deal with a lot of transportation issues for seniors.
Mr. Spidalieri pointed out survey language that asked for demographic information and included information about whether the survey responder was Hispanic. He said that this has nothing to do with transportation and said he did not want the county to participate. Mr. Dvorak also said that in regards to demographics, Amish citizens should have been able to self-identify.
Ms. Boalt confirmed that she should “...tell NOACA that Geauga County did not want to participate”.
Observer Note: Information about NOACA’s approach to transportation and surveys can be found here. It appears that the actual survey can be found here.
Job and Family Services (JFS) Levy - Mr. Morgan said that he wanted the Commissioners to know that the JFS Levy was “pulled from the ballot” for the November election. Mr. Morgan said that this levy was put on a year early so there would be time to get it on the ballot for next year.
Next Step - Mr. Morgan said they had received a request from Next Step to do an environmental survey as a requirement for Next Step to apply for a grant for funds to help with their rent. As noted by Mr. Morgan, Next Step is a non-profit organization that utilizes space in the former County Home property and pays rent to the Commissioners for that space. Mr. Morgan said that the results of an environmental study might indicate costly repairs would be necessary. Mr. Dvorak concurred, saying that this was a very old building.
Planning Commission Board - Commissioners Clerk Christine Blair reported that there would be three vacancies on the Planning Commission at the end of December. She asked if they should advertise these vacancies, and Mr. Dvorak said yes. Ms. Blair said that it is anticipated that the vacancies will be filled in January to allow newly elected commissioners to participate in the appointment.
Observer Note: This Observer asked Ms. Blair at the end of the meeting for the names of the three individuals whose terms would expire and she said they were: Nick Gorris (currently the Chair), Mr. Dan Miller, and Mr. Walter (Skip) Claypool. Once the information is available online, LWVGeauga will provide the proper link for individuals wishing to apply. Currently there is a link for a generic application for a Board appointment here.
Youth Center Grant - The Grant for construction of the Youth Center requires two signatories. The Commissioners decided that the two should be Commissioner Dvorak and County Administrator Morgan.
Public Comment: None
Meeting adjourned at 10:01 am.
More Information and Posted Minutes: Available here.
Next Regular Meeting of the BOCC: The next BOCC meeting will be on Tuesday, October 1, 2024 at 9:30 am.
Observer: Gail Roussey
Editor: Anne Ondrey
Reviewer: Sarah McGlone
Date Submitted: 9/30/2024
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