Chester Government Update
The Chester Township Board of Trustees met on Aug. 13...
The Chester Township Board of Trustees met on Aug. 13. Trustee Joseph Mazzurco explained that in coordination with the Geauga County Department of Aging, the township has scheduled senior trash days for Sept. 14-16. Chester residents 60 and older should contact the department of aging at 440-279-2130 to be placed on the list.
The Chester drop-off for all Chester residents will be Sept. 19, from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the old Chester School site. Visit chestertwp.org for information and restrictions.
Trustee Mazzurco also explained the township has an opportunity to obtain a Go Green Grant in the amount of $2,500 from the Geauga Trumbull Solid Waste Management District to offset some of the costs.
Fire Chief John Wargelin explained that the joint community grant application to Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) was successful, resulting in an award of $890,000. The funds will enable Chester and other municipalities to upgrade their radio and communication systems. For Chester, the grant totaled about $175,000. Trustees thank Chief Wargelin and the Chester Fire Department for their work on obtaining the grant. Wargelin also provided an update on the two additional full-time firefighters and where they are in pre-employment testing.
With the recent resignation of Cathy Cotman from the Chester Zoning Commission, a motion to approve advertising for the vacancy for the term expiring Dec. 31, 2020, was approved. If interested, send an email or a letter of interest to town hall by Sept. 8. Trustees thank Mrs. Cotman for her leadership and service to the community during her tenure.
Next, the board approved a public hearing for proposed zoning amendments 2020-1 through 2020-5. The public hearing will be on Sept. 10 at 6:30 p.m. A legal notice will be published in the Geauga County Maple Leaf communicating the date and time.
Use of the Chester School property by the third-grade flag football Cowboys was approved.
Fiscal Officer Patricia Jarret provided an update on the bank reconciliation. Various financial items were approved and the board then entered into executive session at the end of the meeting.
Upon exiting the executive session, a unanimous motion was passed hiring Chester resident John Onyshko as the new road superintendent at an annual salary of $80,000 per year with an Aug. 29 start date. Trustees look forward to Mr. Onyshko joining the team.
The board also unanimously approved a wage increase for the township administrative assistant Mary Lou Florentine to $22.50 per hour effective Aug. 17. Ms. Florentine has stepped up to assume approximately 40 percent of the assistant fiscal officer duties and with other changes in development, a significant cost-savings is expected by not replacing the township’s assistant fiscal officer position.
On Aug. 17, trustees held a special meeting with the Geauga County Budget Commission to review their proposed temporary appropriations for 2021. Several questions were raised that required a revision to budget plans and the approval was tabled for Aug. 31 to enable the township to address the questions.
On Aug. 20, in a special meeting of the board of trustees, a motion was passed to complete the purchase of a cab/chassis from Rush Truck Center in the amount of $82,750. The vehicle will be outfitted by Concord Equipment over the next several months, including the re-use of an existing dump body, which saves about $20,000, as well as necessary equipment for snow plowing.
Submitted by Chester Township Trustees
