County Engineer Discusses Levy for November Ballot
Board of County Commissioners Meeting - May 19, 2026
Meeting Details: The Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) met in Regular Session on Tuesday, May 19, 2026 at 9:30 am for a Regular Meeting at the Geauga County Office Building, 12611 Ravenwood Drive, Room B303, Chardon, OH. BOCC Meetings can be live streamed through the Geauga ADP Youtube channel and can be accessed here by scrolling down and clicking on the section for YouTube videos. Recordings are available for the public. This meeting can be found here. As of this report’s publication date, the video has been viewed 254 times. Notations in the report refer to the minute notation on the video for a particular section. 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, if any, are addressed at the end of this report.
Public Comment Policy: Permitted as outlined in the BOCC’s Public Comment Policy that was adopted on January 28, 2025, revised on April 15, 2025, and again modified on September 30, 2025 and February 24, 2026.
Attendance: Present were Commissioners Carolyn Brakey, James Dvorak and Ralph Spidalieri. Also present were Commissioners’ Clerk Christine Blair; County Administrator Amy Bevan; Deputy County Administrator Mark Jimison and Finance Manager Adrian Gorton.
County Representatives: Ric Blamer, Manager, Geauga County Airport; Chris Schloss, President of the Geauga Airport Board; Andy Haupt, Engineer; Shane Hajjar, Deputy Engineer; Linda Crombie, Director, Planning Commission; Rob Weigle, Building Manager; Liz Ruvino, Contract Coordinator; Chuck Tkach, Maintenance Project Manager; Nick Gorris, Director, Water Resources; Sheriff Scott Hildenbrand; Chief Deputy Sheriff Thomas Rowan.
Others in Attendance: Chagrin Valley Times reporter Anastasia Nicholas; Geauga Maple Leaf reporter Allison Wilson, other members of the public and press, and this LWVG Observer (virtually). Observer Note: This Observer attended this meeting virtually, so it is possible that more public officials were in the public section than those listed above.
6:24 Min. Pledge of Allegiance and Prayer (Commissioner Dvorak)
8 Min. Public Comment on Agenda Items -There were no comments from the public
8:34 Min Report of Administrator Amy Bevan -
Angela Varner as the mortgage from December 23rd, 2010 for new construction assistance for property located at 16690 Dayton Street in Chagrin Falls, Ohio in the amount of $20,000 has been satisfied.
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For Job and Family Services (JFS) approved the following new hire appointments: Social Services Worker 1 replacement effective January 29th, 2026, Social Services Worker 2 replacement effective March 16th, 2026 and Social Services Supervisor 1 replacement effective April 13, 2026
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For Water Resources, approved hiring to the position of Supervisor, Water Systems, to be effective July 6, 2026
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For Water Resources, approved the resignation of Wastewater Plant Operator 1 (#2326) to be effective June 26, 2026. Also granted permission to advertise for the position of Wastewater Plant Operator 1 (# 2326) internally for a period of five working days. If no qualified candidate is presently employed within the department, then will advertise externally until the position is filled.
11:25 Min Minutes - Minutes for December 30, 2025 were approved. Observer Note: Weekly LWVG Observer Reports for the BOCC are available online through May 19, 2026 for informational purposes but are not substitutes for approved minutes. Approved BOCC Minutes are posted online here through December 30, 2025.
11:47 Min Report of Financials - County Finance Manager Adrian Gorton received approval for the following:
Mrs. Brakey asked how the bed tax was tracking this year, and Mr. Gorton said it was in line with prior years.
13:32 Min The Airport Authority received approval to execute Resolution #26-074 Authorizing the President of the Geauga County Board of Commissioners to execute electronically and submit the Federal Aviation Administration Grant Offer for Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) Airport Infrastructure Grant (AIG) Project No. 3-39-0054-030-2026, Construction of T-Hangar, in the amount of $144,211.00 ($137,000.00 FAA Portion, $7,211.00 Local Match – paid from the construction fund grant).
Mrs. Brakey asked if the APA (Assistant Prosecuting Attorney) had reviewed this, and Ms. Blair said that she did review it and was okay with it.
15:16 Min The County Engineer’s Office received approval to execute Resolution #26-075 Certificate of Need, as Authorized by O.R.C. 5705.03, .19, .25 for renewal of two and five tenths (2.5) mills levy for general construction, reconstruction, resurfacing and repair of streets, roads and bridges in Geauga County.
Mrs. Brakey asked for more information about the levy and confirmed that it was a renewal.
Mr. Haupt restated the purposes and then said, “... the investment that was made over the past 40 years is basically the foundations of the infrastructure that we're maintaining today the money has gone into the infrastructure, bridges, roads to a point where we have one of the best level of services for the taxpayers in the state.” Mrs. Brakey then asked whether it was a qualified levy. She said that “we get money from the state if it's a qualified levy.” Mr. Haupt said, “That I don't know. I wish I could answer that. I'll get back to you on that.” Reviewer Note: Qualified levies are levies that were passed pre-2013 in Ohio; they get 12.5% of their funding from the State. According to this Cleveland.com article, the levy appears to be qualified since it was originally passed in 1986. Mrs. Brakey confirmed that if it isn’t passed in November, the levy would expire at the end of this year. Reviewer Note: In April 2026, when the Budget Commission asked Mr. Haupt why the road and bridge levy wasn’t put up for renewal in 2025 since levies are usually put on the ballot a year before the last collection year, Mr. Haupt said that he was unaware of that. However, the matter did come up at the Engineer's Budget Hearing in April 2025. See the April 6, 2026 Budget Commission LWVG Observer Report and the April 7, 2025 Budget Commission LWVG Observer Report for more information. She said, “I mean, that kind of stresses me out… how would that impact your budget going into 27?” Mr. Haupt said that the levy contributed 27% of the budget. He said it would mean a reduction from 8-10 to 1-2 projects a year. He said that maintenance would still take place. He also said “Voters have approved (it) over the years - 60-70% approval rate.” Mr. Hajjar noted that they have been able to get grants due to the levy. Mrs. Brakey said that was a “compelling argument” and Mr. Dvorak said that “... this is essential.”
27:22 Min The Planning Commission received approval to execute the Final Plat for Chagrin Falls Park, Replat of Sublots 691, 692, 693 and 694 inclusive, as recorded, creating Sublot 691-R in Bainbridge Township.
28:04 Min The Maintenance Department received approval to execute a Service Contract Agreement with Lakeside Window Tint DBA Sunray Window Films LLC to supply and install 3M Affinity Window film and once dry, Supply and Install Casper Cloaking film over four (4) panes of glass for the Sheriff Post in the Geauga County Courthouse, effective May 19, 2026 with all work to be completed within sixty (60) days in an amount not to exceed $5,159.00.
Ms. Ruvino said that in the new courthouse, when you walk in, there is a Sheriff’s post. She said that the bottom four panels are a concern, because, “when they walk through the doors… and you can see all the security cameras.” She explained the two step process as “cloaking” and mirror film. She said it will look like a one way mirror and the public will not be able to see the monitors.
31:37 Min The Department of Water Resources received approval for the following:
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To authorize Ralph Spidalieri, authorized representative, to execute the Ohio Water Development Authority Fund Payment Request #13 for the McFarland Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant Improvements Project for technical services by HDR Engineering, Incorporated in the amount of $47,686.28. Mr. Gorris said,"If you notice the dates on the actual invoice, it's almost a month behind.” He said this was due to the file size causing the invoices to get stuck going through cyber security.
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To authorize Ralph Spidalieri, authorized representative, to execute the Request for Partial Payment #11 for Shook Construction Company for the McFarland Wastewater Treatment Plant Improvements Project in the amount of $1,607,400.91, and the Ohio Water Development Authority (OWDA) Contractor’s Estimate, and the OWDA Fund Payment Request #11 (loan #11217) in the same amount of $1,607,400.91. Observer Note: Mr. Gorris explained in a separate email that this is one payment, but two forms need to be approved and signed.
Mr. Gorris said “This corresponds to the work completed to date.”
Mr. Gorris commented on the status of the project: “.... we're going to start seeing more structures going up and now it's going to depend on our material vendors for the equipment. You know across the industry everybody's lagging on that. We have some guarantees that were in place prior… just hoping that nothing can hurt those guarantees. And I still think we're ahead of schedule to fire the new plant - still on schedule for July of 2027 (for) full completion.”
32:41 Min The Commissioners’ Office received approval for the following:
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To discuss a proposed Road Name Change for a portion of Osmond Road to Levi Lane in Burton and Claridon Townships, and further grant permission to hold a Public Hearing for the proposed, to be held on Tuesday, June 2, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. Notice of this Public Hearing will be advertised on May 21, 2026 and on the county website.
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For the substitution of Amily Imbrogno of Gallagher Sharp to represent the Clerk of Courts in the Courthouse News Service vs. Sheila Bevington, et al., District Court Case #1:25-cv-02617 and further approve and authorize the President of the Board to execute any necessary documents on behalf of the Board to discontinue the representation of current counsel in the case and appoint and employ Amily Imbrogno of Gallagher Sharp to represent the Clerk of Courts, including to file a joint motion to amend the existing judgement entry with the Court. Mrs. Brakey said that Ms. Imbrogno switched law firms and Ms. Bevington wanted to continue with Ms. Imbrogno. Ms. Bevan noted that her rates are actually lower now.
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To schedule Special Meetings on Thursday, June 4, 2026, and Thursday, July 9, 2026, at 9:30 am to hold Work Sessions with Departments. Observer Note: In prior meetings it was stated that these meetings with Departments will help the BOCC in planning for facilities needs. This will revise the previous action from March 17, 2026, where these work sessions were scheduled to be held at 10:00 am, to the now 9:30 am time slot and be held as Special Meetings. These meetings will be held in the County Office Building, Room B303, Chardon.
Board Discussion
Opioid Settlement Grant – Remaining Funds
Ms. Bevan said that there were funds remaining in what they allocated for the year. She said they had tabled the request for a Recovery House. Reviewer Note: See the April 7, 2026 BOCC LWVG Observer Report for more information. Mr. Dvorak was in favor of spending the allocation and made a motion to give $50,000 to the Recovery Home. There was no second. Mr. Spidalieri wanted to wait and speak with the Director, and Mrs. Brakey said “we have heard from neighbors and parents of children in the school and they are concerned.” Mr. Spidalieri said that, “I have heard quite a bit of feedback as well.”
Mrs. Brakey said that they had received another request from the Suicide and Fatality Review Board to research causes of suicide. She said that whatever the BOCC gave them would be helpful.
Mr. Spidalari said that “we would have to talk with the Sheriff,” but he noticed that there is a care unit in the Sheriff’s office. Mrs. Brakey said that this would be the Loss Team and that she would be in favor of that but she wanted a formal proposal.
Mrs. Brakey asked about the Spectrometer, and Sheriff Hildenbrand said they are working on it. Observer Note: Mr. Spidalieri also brought up this drug testing equipment without referring to its technical name at the end of the meeting.
Safety Center Master Security Control Console Upgrade
Mr. Tkach said that this involves just the console and that he was not asking for a motion, but rather looking for direction. He explained the new project at the Safety Center, which is a Security Control console upgrade. He said that there are digital cameras, intercoms and other components, and they should all work together but with the existing analog console, that is not possible.
He said there are three levels of possible upgrades, and he was recommending level two, which he said he hoped would be less than $500,000.
The main topic for discussion though was what he called the delivery method. He explained that the typical process for any project is to hire an engineering firm under a separate contract for design and then hire another company that would do the installation. But he said with his type of specialized project, it is hard to find two separate firms with this type of experience in an integrated project. He said they would like to use a project delivery method called Design/Build, which is permitted by ORC (Ohio Revised Code). He said that design/build is a process tailored to highly specialized integrations and that there are very few firms that specialize in this field. The firm chosen would do the entire process. He would like to pursue a design/build, but they haven’t used this process in the past so they would have to “build out” systems to move forward with this approach. He said that it would require a criteria architect engineer upfront, “which is a firm that just helps you build the criteria by which you will select a design build firm and tailor the scope a little bit, and then they help through the process of evaluating the firms and selecting the proposals. The actual process is not the normal bid process. You don't send it out for bid and take the lowest bid. It's a two-step process. You first look for qualifications…. You pick a handful of firms, maybe two or three, and then you ask for proposals from each of those, and then you evaluate the proposals. So, it's not a competitive bid as we're used to, but it does allow itself to scale down to a certain number of key firms and then really evaluate each of the proposals that they submit.”
Mrs. Brakey asked if price would be one element, and Mr. Tkach said yes, price as well as their approach.
Mr. Tkach said they would need two new contract templates - for the criteria architect and for the design/build. He reached out to the Prosecutor, and they said they would have to reach out to outside firms for help with the templates with a cost of about $7,000. He wanted to know if the Board agreed to this approach.
Mrs. Brakey asked if this process would be used in the future?
Mr. Tkach said that there had been some specialized projects where this would have been a better process.
Mrs. Brakey thought this process made sense but asked how long this console would last.
Mr. Tkach said that this technology will lend itself to 20 years, because you can add to it as needed. Mrs. Brakey said she went to the Safety Center and said she believed the console is in need of replacement. She asked about the timeline. Mr. Tkach said the criteria part will take 6-9 months, and then a two step qualification and proposal process, so almost the same as the normal bid process.
Mr. Dvorak thought this made sense as well.
54:10 Min. Public Comment
A man from South Russell asked about NOACA and when the Executive Director was coming. He wanted to know if anyone would be there in June.
55:35 Min. Executive Session - At 10:22 am, the Commissioners approved going into Executive Session for the purpose of discussing the compensation of public employees pursuant to OC121.22G1. They were joined by Sheriff Hildenbrand, Chief Deputy Sheriff Rowan, Ms. Bevan and Mr. Jimison.
1:12:36 Min. Return from Executive Session at 10:37 am with no action.
Mr. Spidalieri brought up the purchase of the drug testing equipment. Everyone agreed it was important and that the money was already encumbered. The Sheriff said that they already have two deputies trained to use the equipment. He said they would try to have an answer about the status of the purchase of this equipment by the following week.
Min. Adjournment at 10:42 am.
Next Meeting: The next Regular meeting will be Thursday, May 28, 2026 at 9:30 am at the Geauga County Office Building, 12611 Ravenwood Drive, Room B303, Chardon, OH. Observer Note: The regular Tuesday meeting date was moved to Thursday due to the Memorial Day holiday on Monday.
Observer: Gail Roussey
Editor: Harry Rees
Reviewer: Sarah McGlone
Date Submitted: May 25, 2026
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