Chester Township
On March 7, the Board of Trustees held a regular trustee meeting. This meeting was rescheduled because two trustees were out of town at the…
On March 7, the Board of Trustees held a regular trustee meeting. This meeting was rescheduled because two trustees were out of town at the Auditor of State Local Government Officials conference in Columbus the previous day. Regular business was conducted which included money for aggregate, repairs for a Road Department truck, hydraulic parts and final approval of the last payment to Mr. Excavator for the cemetery expansion.
A bid from Abate Florist was accepted by the Board for 24 hanging baskets that will be located at the intersection of routes 322 and 306. A motion was passed authorizing the Fiscal Officer to release data to AT&T as we continue to analyze our phone expenditures. Both AT&T, and the County IT department have been/will be assisting Chester Township with this analysis.
A resident who has served on the West Geauga Joint Recreational District has asked to be re-appointed to another term. This position is responsible for scheduling softball, soccer and volleyball games and pavilion use. If any resident is interested in serving and wishes to be considered for this position, please send a letter to town hall or an email to mlflorentine@chestertwp.org expressing your interest. This letter/email is due at Town Hall by 4 p.m. March 28.
In the Fiscal Officer’s Report, Craig Richter went through the monthly bank reconciliation and presented his initial thoughts for updating the township website with financial information. Fiscal year 2013 has been closed and reports provided to the Board. These reports will be placed on the website. The 2013 Fiscal Year audit will likely be scheduled with the Auditor of State in the next month or two.
In a previous meeting, a resident had asked if it was allowable to establish retroactive pay (to the first of the year) for township employees. Research confirmed that the action taken by the Board was legal.
After regular business was conducted, the Trustees went through each line item of the General Fund. The 2014 temporary appropriations, passed by the previous Board, were used as the basis for the discussion. The 2014 carryover was projected at $2.0 million and the temporary GF expenditures were $1.03 million. 2014 revenue is approximately $483,000.
With a change in law, estate tax dollars are no longer a revenue source, and local government funding from the state has been reduced by about $100,000 per year (a 60 percent reduction by the State of Ohio). This represents an overall reduction in General Fund revenue of more than $600,000 per year.
It was recognized by the Board that this revenue reduction has a substantial impact on the ability of the General Fund to continue supporting the Road Department, which, in recent years, has been about $350,000 annually. Adjustments will be made to the line items and all budgets will again be reviewed and discussed at a March 15, 2014 special meeting. The March 20, 7 p.m. regular meeting which will include the department heads as we finalize 2014 appropriations.
