Commissioner Lennon Concerned About Potential Spending
on Basement Remodel in the Courthouse Annex
Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) Meeting - November 5, 2024
Meeting Details: The Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) met on Tuesday, November 5 at 9:30 am for a meeting at the County Administration Building, 12611 Ravenwood Drive, Room B303, Chardon, OH. 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 has been no formal policy introduced although public comment was permitted today.
Attendance: Present were Commissioners Ralph Spidalieri, Timothy Lennon and James Dvorak. Also present were Commissioners' Clerk Christine Blair, County Administrator Gerry Morgan, Assistant County Administrator Linda Burhenne and Finance Manager Adrian Gorton.
County Representatives: Shane Hajjar, Deputy Engineer; Glen Vernick, Director, Maintenance Department; Matt Sieracki, Maintenance Contract coordinator, and Chuck Tkach, Program Manager, Maintenance.
Others in Attendance: Ron Leyde, Chief Deputy Auditor; Adam Litke, Administrator, Geauga Public Health; Pam McMahan, Chief of Operations, Auditor’s Office; Jessica Boalt, Director, Office on Aging, other members of the public and press, and this observer.
The Pledge of Allegiance was recited and a prayer was offered by Mr. Dvorak.
Minutes: Minutes for the October 8, 2024 meeting were approved. Observer Comment: Weekly LWVG Observer Reports for BOCC are available online through November 5, 2024, for informational purposes but are not substitutes for approved minutes. Approved BOCC Minutes are posted online here through October 8, 2024.
Administrator’s Report: Mr. Morgan reported on the following action he took in accordance with Ohio law: He approved a travel request for the Commissioners’ Office.
Financial Report: Mr. Gorton received approval for the following: Observer Note: Monetary figures are generally only given for the Vouchers, but monetary figures are listed in any instance when they are given.
Supplemental in the Airport Construction Fund Observer Note: This was not discussed, but the Airport expected to receive funds from the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration). See LWVG Observer Report for September 10, 2024 for details.
Cash Transfer from Commissioners' General Fund to Court Technology for the remainder of their 2024 funding.
Transfer from the General Fund to Community Development, Metzenbaum, and Board of Elections for their 2024 interest transfers.
Travel Request from Juvenile Court
Vouchers:
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$104,105 from the Commissioners to Ravenwood for fourth quarter Youth Center operations.
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$569,071.85 from the Commissioners to Infinity Construction for Payment # 13 for the County Courthouse Expansion Project.
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$208,410.50 from the Engineer’s Office to Grayline Inc., for the replacement of the Sperry Road Bridge.
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$302,131.50 from the Engineer’s Office to Trask Construction for the replacement of the Thwing Road Bridge.
Revenue Certification for Common Pleas Drug Court for additional Federal Grant revenue was received.
Mr. Gorton also noted that they are working toward finalizing Permanent Appropriations by next month. He received the certification from the Budget Commission, but he reminded the Commissioners that the Budget Commission had reduced the JFS (Job and Family Services) levy by $1 Million. Mr Gorton said that he had been instructed by the Budget Commision to ensure that this amount was to be taken into account. He said that he has identified some areas of expense that could be repurposed to go toward replacing this $1 Million, and the rest would come out of unappropriated money (unused by Departments). Mr. Gorton said further that if the Commissioners had specific suggestions that they should let him know in a future session.
The County Engineer’s Office received approval for the following:
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To execute the Ohio Public Works Commission, Appendix E – Disbursement Request Form and Certification #1 in order to release funds from the state portion of the OPWC (Ohio Public Works Commission) grant for the Auburn Road Resurfacing in Munson and Newbury Townships in the amount of $250,000.00.
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To executive the Public Works Commission, Appendix E – Disbursement Request Form and Certification #1 in order to release funds from the state portion of the OPWC grant for the Chardon-Windsor Road Resurfacing in Claridon and Hambden Townships in the amount of $300,000.00.
The Prosecutor’s Office requested the Board approve the Application for Appointment of Counsel for the Geauga County Board of Health, appointing Attorney Bryan Kostura to represent and advise the Board of Health on the proposed lease agreement and any other matters relating thereto between the Board of Health and the BOCC. Observer Note: The lease agreement has been a longstanding topic this year. Prior to moving into the new county office building, Geauga Public Health did not pay rent to utilize the County Office at 470 Center Street in Chardon. There has been considerable discussion at the meetings of both BOCC and Geauga Public Health about an appropriate amount for GPH to pay to utilize the space they now occupy. See LWVG Observer Report for the BOCC September 17, 2024 meeting and further links contained in that report for more information.
Motion approved to table this matter for further discussion and exploration.
The Maintenance Department received approval for the following:
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To advertise for Bids for Geauga County February 2025 – January 2028 Non-Hazardous Waste Removal Services to be held on December 5, 2024 at 2:00 p.m. Notice of this Bid Opening will be advertised on November 15, 2024, November 22, 2024 and on the County website.
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To advertise for Bids for Geauga County 2025-2028 “Hill” (Chardon City locations) HVAC (Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning) Maintenance to be held on December 5, 2024 at 2:10 p.m. Notice of this Bid Opening will be advertised on November 15, 2024, November 22, 2024 and on the County website.
Mr. Lennon asked if the HVAC contract would include all County facilities and Mr. Sieracki said that it would. He said there was a caveat that if the County no longer owns the Opera House (on Chardon Square) that portion would no longer be required. Observer Note: There was no discussion of this comment and no further discussion of the status of the Opera House, which is used by the Public Defender, Treasurer’s Office and ADP (Automatic Data Processing). See LWVG Observer report for February 27 2024 for information on concerns about the Opera House building.
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To approve the following design firm rankings in compliance with O.R.C. 153.69(A) and evaluation of Statements of Interest and Qualifications responses received for providing professional design and contract administration services for the Safety Center Roof including 1) R. E. Warner and Associates, Inc., 2) Technical Assurance, Inc. and 3) CT Consultants, Inc.
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To select R.E. Warner and Associates, Inc., as the most qualified firm to provide professional design and contract administration services for the Safety Center Roof, in accordance with O.R.C. 153.69(B) and further authorize the department to begin contract negotiations.
There was a discussion about the work to be done at the Safety Center and concerns expressed about why the roof needed to be replaced after repairs only lasted five years. Mr. Tkach, Program Manager, said that this is a 20-year guarantee. Mr. Dvorak confirmed that 100% of the roof will be new. Mr. Vernick, Maintenance Director, said that this is a flat roof and that flat roofs are notorious for having problems.
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To acknowledge the Statement of Qualifications on file for professional design and contract administration including 1) CT Consultants, Inc. 2) Smolen Engineering Ltd and 3) Fogle/Stenzel Architects, Inc. and select CT Consultants, Inc. as the most qualified firm in accordance with O.R.C. 153.69(A) for the remodel of basement space for the Auditor’s Office in the Courthouse Annex Building and further authorize the Department to begin contract negotiations, in accordance with O.R.C. 153.69(B).
Mr. Lennon wanted to know what the cost of the project would be. He said that he didn’t like going into this type of project without a budget. He asked “Do we want to continue to pour money into these failing buildings?” Mr. Tkach said that this is just a first step, and they will also need to investigate plumbing and HVAC needs and costs. Observer Note: In addition to the Auditor’s Office, the Courthouse Annex also houses the Geauga County Juvenile Court.
Public Comment was solicited, but none was offered.
Meeting adjourned at 9:57 am
More Information and Posted Minutes: Available here.
Next Regular Meeting of the BOCC: The next BOCC meeting after this one is Thursday November 14, 2024 at 9:30 am. This is a change from the normal Tuesday meeting schedule due to the Veteran’s Day holiday on Monday.
Observer: Gail Roussey
Editor: Anne Ondrey
Reviewer: Sarah McGlone
Date Submitted: 11/12/2024
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