This was mentioned at the trustees meeting on July 17 and appears in the blog post for that date as an intention. It has been confirmed by Todd Peetz:
The next update with all building use committees, open to the public, is on Tuesday, August 25, at 6:30 p.m. at the Mantua Center school building.
At the trustees meeting the hope was stated that information about the structural evaluation of the building should be available by that meeting. I think that is a good possibility--which means that as many residents as possible should be there.
I also assume that not only the Building Assessment Committee will report, but also the Grants & Funding and Building Use committees.
Numbers count; please come.
Tuesday, July 28, 2015
Sunday, July 26, 2015
Trustees July 17--Solid Discussions; School Progress
[Blogger Foreword: Every time I resolve to condense the blog and keep it more to public comment and tell everyone that, a meeting comes along that has a lot of meat in it and deserves more than just a passing mention. "Meat" here doesn't mean anything controversial or flamboyant, but just the good, solid work of governing a township. If more of our meetings in the past six years or so had been like this one, a lot would be different.]
After the usual opening things, Marie commented about working on the lease-purchase for the new truck. [I question whether the decision to spend the money this way is good solid work or more image-polishing, at a cost.]
Marie: The proposed 5-year lease comes to $155,310 annually, payments in advance, plus $295 closing costs. $32,598 needs to be moved from various funds. There is no down payment, but the $32,598 must be paid ion advance.
John Festa made the motion; Vic asked about the annual payment actually is (see above); there was a little discussion; Jason seconded. All aye.
There was a request/application for a liquor permit at Roundup Lake. This is for carryout beer and sealed container. It is a new application, but a hearing is not necessary. The proper motion, second, and vote were executed. Approved.
The trustees signed a contract with Perrine Asphalt. [See the previous post for the paving that was being arranged for.]
Sue Skrovan, Civic Center second quarter report. During this period, several people paid for extra hours for set-up time.
There is an issue with birds getting into the building. When that happens, everything has to bne cleaned and disinfected. Sue has spent 5 hours on this.
Jason asked if they are coming in when the doors are left open.
No.
Vic: There is a piece of flashing missing and they seem to get in there.
[Blogger: I stopped by the Civic Center a couple of days ago for something else but had a chance to look at an additional problem: the nest right at the doorway. The wiring makes a kind of little hammock where the nests are built, and then droppings and feathers fall at the doorway. This is potentially a health problem, and the wiring does not look as if it would be hard to re-position to eliminate the nest support. As for the flashing, that has been a problem for a while. Neither looks as if it should be hard to fix. With all of John Festa's concern about the cost of the Civic Center, a one-time expense to fix the flashing seems like an economy, in contrast to paying for cleanup time after time.]
Sue: I also wanted to ad that the last weekend in June, nothing was scheduled but when the rain came, luckily I was at the school volunteering and got calls and was able to rent to two people whose outdoor events had been washed out.
There was some other discussion about scheduling.
BZA: A hearing is scheduled for August 3 at 6:30 p.m. in the township hall for an accessory building.
Sue Skrovan, Garden Club: The weather has made work difficult. The thistle at the 12-holer is getting pretty large. The seeds blow around and then there is unwanted thistle in various places. [Apparently neither the road crew nor the lawn care people see this as their responsibility, and no one with authority has spoken with them. Jason seems to be the lead person on this.]
Amy Janca, LCA: No meeting.
Carole Pollard, Mantua Restoration Society: I thanked John Festa for making good on his pledge to the elevator fund at Art on the Hill and announced that the restoration society was sponsoring the flea market on the upcoming weekend.
Trustee Reports, starting with Jason:
He has been contacted about an Eagle Scout project.
Jason: I have never been in Boy Scouts and am not familiar with what they do.
Vic explained how it works, and Mark Hall, who was a scout master at one time, added that essentially the scout is a project manager.
Amy Janca and John Festa thought that something in the cemetery might qualify.
Larry Leitzow asked about benches and said his shop could be used if that was the decision.
[Blogger: OK, folks, here is my take on this: Larry offers his barn, on the surface of it as a public service. But has Larry ever passed up an opportunity to indoctrinate (a more genteel term than badger and browbeat) anyone within earshot? Does a kid trying to live up to the Boy Scout Code need to be subjected to that? On the other hand, the world is not as clean and idealistic as the Boy Scout Code. Maybe it would be a reality experience.]
Jason then commented about the flooding at Aurora Meadows, observing that the northern part of the township got about 2 inches of rain in an hour. No culvert pipe can handle that. Brian Tayerle recommended an open ditch. But who will pay for it? It is all on private property.
Vic: It needs to be surveyed and storm drains or sewers could be put in the. We could apply for a grant--that will be millions of dollars.
John Festa mentioned the Chagrin Valley Watershed Partnership.
Vic: It is outside the right of way and what used to be open ditches are full of debris and then back up. The water table in this area, especially in the north, is very high--right under the sod.
[Then there was general discussion about the water and drainage problems.]
Amy Janca was concerned about the culvert under Chamberlin Rd., which never used to flood so badly, but now it may be undermining the road. We are concerned that it may wash away at some point and the road will collapse.
There was more about the effects of the flooding and how bad it had been.
[Blogger: This is not to dismiss the seriousness of it all, and the anguish it caused residents. At this point, however, there is little the trustees can do about it.]
Trustee Report, John Festa: Not much.
Trustee Report, Vic: I have a quote on repairing the garage lintel. The only person who came to look at it was Ron Stamm, of Troy Construction. [Vic described the repair.] The quote is in two parts. Ron has proposed replacing the damaged materials and parts with shaped concrete, not metal. [The metal presently there has rusted because of water damage.] Someone will have to remove the door mechanism so the work can be done.
Then Vic asked what kind of money we have.
Jason thought it looked expensive for what it is.
There was more discussion and finally Jason moved to shift$2,000 from machinery and equipment to improvement of sites. Seconded and passed.
Mantua Center School meetings: [Before getting to that, Jason said that] the updated PDF of the zoning book could now be put on the website.
Meeting dates: Todd Peetz had proposed August 11 or 25 as dates. Jason thought that we should have some information back on the master plan by then.
After a little discussion, the date chosen was Tuesday, August 25, 6:30 p.m. at the school building.
Jason thought that since it was Todd's meeting, the trustees did not need to advertise it, but it would be put on the website.
John Festa, about the school: Hal Stamm is working on the structural study and has another week to go. Doug Fuller asked John Festa in an e-mail if the trustees wanted to read the study first or must go ahead. John Festa wanted to wait until the trustees had read it.
[Blogger: Of course he does. That will give him a chance to go over it with Larry.]
Vic : Did he say anything about opening up the plaster ceiling in one of the rooms?
John Festa: If it is part of the study, I have no problem with that.
[Blogger: That was a response of sorts, but was it an answer to the question asked?]
Vic: He needs to see what the actual floor is.
John Festa, Veterans Memorial: It will be turned over in August.
Vic: Occupancy permit: We are very close--in its final stages.
Then there was discussion about the clothing giveaway, focusing on insurance. Because it is now going to be in a township building, the insurance is necessary. There was also something about how Todd Peetz handled a renter working against the cost of the lease.
John Festa was concerned about how much room was being taken up. Things are spilling into the hallway and into another room.
Then there were discussions about health and risk insurance. The concern now is over the valuation that has been placed on the buildings, especially the garage, which seem extremely high. But the cost of replacing the building is apparently the reason for the high valuation, which your blogger did not write down.
Jason mentioned Neighborhood Development Services (NDS), which is involved in the process of removing abandoned buildings and those in serious arrears on taxes. The township corroborates a list of such buildings and then NDS takes over.
John Festa reported that he had gotten another e-mail from the bicycle racers, who were supposed to be at this meeting but were not. They were making various requests about closing or even repairing roads (and the ones they wanted repaired are county, not township roads).
Vic observed that we have not done anything like this before, and everyone seemed very concerned and even apprehensive about the whole thing. The safety issues are sobering. This is a series of time trials. [ Larry Leitzow pointed out, helpfully, that riders start at one-minute intervals. So there would not, one would assume, be a Tour de France type gaggle of bikes clogging the road. But it would be for the day, not just a bunch going through. I don't know what has finally turned out about this, although it should be going on as I keyboard this.]
Public Comment came next.
Amy Janca: She thanked the trustees for working with the county on the flooding issues. We would like some communication from the county saying what they can do. [Blogger: There were another couple of words about where the help might be. Over a week later, I have lost that in the mist.]
Mark Hall and Carole Pollard had nothing for this section.
Dave Pollard, S.R. 82: I helped to move and bag all the clothing over there and can not believe the volume. The east room on the bottom floor was 1/2 full of bags of clothing. The generosity of the people in this community actually exceeds the needs of people in surrounding communities. I fully understand why she does not want to move that even once a month. It took us three hours, and there were probably a dozen of us. If it spills into the hall right now, it does not inconvenience anyone.
Matt Parsons, Wayne Road: The project for the Eagle Scout--maybe he could look at something to do with the school. Have him reach out to MaRSI. It would show he was involved in a big community project.
After the usual opening things, Marie commented about working on the lease-purchase for the new truck. [I question whether the decision to spend the money this way is good solid work or more image-polishing, at a cost.]
Marie: The proposed 5-year lease comes to $155,310 annually, payments in advance, plus $295 closing costs. $32,598 needs to be moved from various funds. There is no down payment, but the $32,598 must be paid ion advance.
John Festa made the motion; Vic asked about the annual payment actually is (see above); there was a little discussion; Jason seconded. All aye.
There was a request/application for a liquor permit at Roundup Lake. This is for carryout beer and sealed container. It is a new application, but a hearing is not necessary. The proper motion, second, and vote were executed. Approved.
The trustees signed a contract with Perrine Asphalt. [See the previous post for the paving that was being arranged for.]
Sue Skrovan, Civic Center second quarter report. During this period, several people paid for extra hours for set-up time.
There is an issue with birds getting into the building. When that happens, everything has to bne cleaned and disinfected. Sue has spent 5 hours on this.
Jason asked if they are coming in when the doors are left open.
No.
Vic: There is a piece of flashing missing and they seem to get in there.
[Blogger: I stopped by the Civic Center a couple of days ago for something else but had a chance to look at an additional problem: the nest right at the doorway. The wiring makes a kind of little hammock where the nests are built, and then droppings and feathers fall at the doorway. This is potentially a health problem, and the wiring does not look as if it would be hard to re-position to eliminate the nest support. As for the flashing, that has been a problem for a while. Neither looks as if it should be hard to fix. With all of John Festa's concern about the cost of the Civic Center, a one-time expense to fix the flashing seems like an economy, in contrast to paying for cleanup time after time.]
Sue: I also wanted to ad that the last weekend in June, nothing was scheduled but when the rain came, luckily I was at the school volunteering and got calls and was able to rent to two people whose outdoor events had been washed out.
There was some other discussion about scheduling.
BZA: A hearing is scheduled for August 3 at 6:30 p.m. in the township hall for an accessory building.
Sue Skrovan, Garden Club: The weather has made work difficult. The thistle at the 12-holer is getting pretty large. The seeds blow around and then there is unwanted thistle in various places. [Apparently neither the road crew nor the lawn care people see this as their responsibility, and no one with authority has spoken with them. Jason seems to be the lead person on this.]
Amy Janca, LCA: No meeting.
Carole Pollard, Mantua Restoration Society: I thanked John Festa for making good on his pledge to the elevator fund at Art on the Hill and announced that the restoration society was sponsoring the flea market on the upcoming weekend.
Trustee Reports, starting with Jason:
He has been contacted about an Eagle Scout project.
Jason: I have never been in Boy Scouts and am not familiar with what they do.
Vic explained how it works, and Mark Hall, who was a scout master at one time, added that essentially the scout is a project manager.
Amy Janca and John Festa thought that something in the cemetery might qualify.
Larry Leitzow asked about benches and said his shop could be used if that was the decision.
[Blogger: OK, folks, here is my take on this: Larry offers his barn, on the surface of it as a public service. But has Larry ever passed up an opportunity to indoctrinate (a more genteel term than badger and browbeat) anyone within earshot? Does a kid trying to live up to the Boy Scout Code need to be subjected to that? On the other hand, the world is not as clean and idealistic as the Boy Scout Code. Maybe it would be a reality experience.]
Jason then commented about the flooding at Aurora Meadows, observing that the northern part of the township got about 2 inches of rain in an hour. No culvert pipe can handle that. Brian Tayerle recommended an open ditch. But who will pay for it? It is all on private property.
Vic: It needs to be surveyed and storm drains or sewers could be put in the. We could apply for a grant--that will be millions of dollars.
John Festa mentioned the Chagrin Valley Watershed Partnership.
Vic: It is outside the right of way and what used to be open ditches are full of debris and then back up. The water table in this area, especially in the north, is very high--right under the sod.
[Then there was general discussion about the water and drainage problems.]
Amy Janca was concerned about the culvert under Chamberlin Rd., which never used to flood so badly, but now it may be undermining the road. We are concerned that it may wash away at some point and the road will collapse.
There was more about the effects of the flooding and how bad it had been.
[Blogger: This is not to dismiss the seriousness of it all, and the anguish it caused residents. At this point, however, there is little the trustees can do about it.]
Trustee Report, John Festa: Not much.
Trustee Report, Vic: I have a quote on repairing the garage lintel. The only person who came to look at it was Ron Stamm, of Troy Construction. [Vic described the repair.] The quote is in two parts. Ron has proposed replacing the damaged materials and parts with shaped concrete, not metal. [The metal presently there has rusted because of water damage.] Someone will have to remove the door mechanism so the work can be done.
Then Vic asked what kind of money we have.
Jason thought it looked expensive for what it is.
There was more discussion and finally Jason moved to shift$2,000 from machinery and equipment to improvement of sites. Seconded and passed.
Mantua Center School meetings: [Before getting to that, Jason said that] the updated PDF of the zoning book could now be put on the website.
Meeting dates: Todd Peetz had proposed August 11 or 25 as dates. Jason thought that we should have some information back on the master plan by then.
After a little discussion, the date chosen was Tuesday, August 25, 6:30 p.m. at the school building.
Jason thought that since it was Todd's meeting, the trustees did not need to advertise it, but it would be put on the website.
John Festa, about the school: Hal Stamm is working on the structural study and has another week to go. Doug Fuller asked John Festa in an e-mail if the trustees wanted to read the study first or must go ahead. John Festa wanted to wait until the trustees had read it.
[Blogger: Of course he does. That will give him a chance to go over it with Larry.]
Vic : Did he say anything about opening up the plaster ceiling in one of the rooms?
John Festa: If it is part of the study, I have no problem with that.
[Blogger: That was a response of sorts, but was it an answer to the question asked?]
Vic: He needs to see what the actual floor is.
John Festa, Veterans Memorial: It will be turned over in August.
Vic: Occupancy permit: We are very close--in its final stages.
Then there was discussion about the clothing giveaway, focusing on insurance. Because it is now going to be in a township building, the insurance is necessary. There was also something about how Todd Peetz handled a renter working against the cost of the lease.
John Festa was concerned about how much room was being taken up. Things are spilling into the hallway and into another room.
Then there were discussions about health and risk insurance. The concern now is over the valuation that has been placed on the buildings, especially the garage, which seem extremely high. But the cost of replacing the building is apparently the reason for the high valuation, which your blogger did not write down.
Jason mentioned Neighborhood Development Services (NDS), which is involved in the process of removing abandoned buildings and those in serious arrears on taxes. The township corroborates a list of such buildings and then NDS takes over.
John Festa reported that he had gotten another e-mail from the bicycle racers, who were supposed to be at this meeting but were not. They were making various requests about closing or even repairing roads (and the ones they wanted repaired are county, not township roads).
Vic observed that we have not done anything like this before, and everyone seemed very concerned and even apprehensive about the whole thing. The safety issues are sobering. This is a series of time trials. [ Larry Leitzow pointed out, helpfully, that riders start at one-minute intervals. So there would not, one would assume, be a Tour de France type gaggle of bikes clogging the road. But it would be for the day, not just a bunch going through. I don't know what has finally turned out about this, although it should be going on as I keyboard this.]
Public Comment came next.
Amy Janca: She thanked the trustees for working with the county on the flooding issues. We would like some communication from the county saying what they can do. [Blogger: There were another couple of words about where the help might be. Over a week later, I have lost that in the mist.]
Mark Hall and Carole Pollard had nothing for this section.
Dave Pollard, S.R. 82: I helped to move and bag all the clothing over there and can not believe the volume. The east room on the bottom floor was 1/2 full of bags of clothing. The generosity of the people in this community actually exceeds the needs of people in surrounding communities. I fully understand why she does not want to move that even once a month. It took us three hours, and there were probably a dozen of us. If it spills into the hall right now, it does not inconvenience anyone.
Matt Parsons, Wayne Road: The project for the Eagle Scout--maybe he could look at something to do with the school. Have him reach out to MaRSI. It would show he was involved in a big community project.
Sunday, July 12, 2015
Mantua Township Trustees 7-2-15; Mostly Routine
Various minutes of several meetings were reviewed and approved.
Financial Report: Supplemental appropriations were requested. These were re-allocations within funds.
Jason made a motion to put the 1.5mil renewal levy on the ballot. This is for outside millage for road and bridge.
Then 8 bids for road projects were opened. One is to chip and seal two miles of Winchell Road. [My apologies, but my notes here are not detailed.]
Then bids were opened for St. James, Samuel, Vincent, and John Edward. The low bid was Perrine Asphalt, with $172,561.50.
Some other paving under Issue 2 is also in the works. When all is said and done on that and the township has paid its share , there is still $55,600 in the budget for contracts.
Jason made the motion to have Perrine Asphalt do the paving for John Edward, Vincent, Samuel, and St. James drives, pending the required letter from the state. Vic seconded. Passed.
Zoning: Income from permits, $350.00 There are some additions and signs, and some cleanup on Winchell.
There is a BZA hearing for signs at Mantua Corners. Apparently the meeting has been rescheduled at least once for the convenience of the business owner, who according to John Dickey got the paperwork in the day before the meeting.
Land Bank grant money: Jason and John Dickey are going to Ravenna on July 10 to discuss this with [I believe] Regional Planning. This applies to properties that appear to be abandoned or that appear to be safety issues.
Cemetery Report: Foundations, $680; Burial Fees, $950; Graves $1,500.
Jason thanked Jim Aldrich for mowing at the back of the cemetery and mentioned something about probably compensating him for that work.
Under new business, Vic thought the trustees should sign the bid for the new truck.
Jason explained about that. It comes to $55,845.51.
[Blogger: The next part of the meeting was about the school, and that has been posted.]
There was some discussion about the bank at the intersection of SR 82 and Center Road, and shaving it to improve visibility in hopes of reducing accidents. ODOT would also remove trees that contribute to the problem. An agreement with the home owners will be needed.
Center School Meetings
Jason: I had talked to Todd Peetz about this. He asked about another meeting, and I told him we would like to get them under way and maybe in August meet again.
That seemed OK with John Festa and Vic, and Jason was going to get back in touch with Todd..
Clothing Center Lease: Jason passed out 8 pages [!] of agreement details.
He mentioned having talked about an allowance for repairs and mentioned the arrangement Todd Peetz had described regarding a tenant in Regional Planning's building. That person had been paying $800 per month, and they made a stipulation of an allowance to turn in receipts so there would be a paper trail. Jason expressed some uncertainty about determining hourly rates for work that was done.
Nancy Tafel is very anxious to get this going.
Jason: We need to talk about insurance. The lessee shall carry insurance insuring Mantua Township for $1 million. I think the hold harmless should be in place.
John Festa: I think the policy is going to be standard if they want to be named additional insured. If their policy lapses, you would be notified. He gave a hypothetical situation when Jason expressed some perplexity.
Marie: But if she says that she does not have the money and the insurance would be a hardship?
Vic asked for some clarification about how things had been done and thought that something [in the paperwork] had been changed.
No money changes hands in the clothing giveaway.
Vic also announced that Linda Ehlert had shown up with 15 volunteers, and the walls had been painted. A couple of places will need some touchup.
Then there was some discussion about health insurance.
Website: John Festa had posted additional cemetery rules, and there was some discussion about needing some new sections on the website.
Additional old business, John Festa: This was regarding the Veterans' Memorial paperwork to accept the memorial from the committee. Chris Meduri sent some guidelines that John Festa wants to give to the committee. Frank Horack was not present this evening.
It is one page.
[Blogger: This astonished me: There are 8 pages for someone who is conducting a charitable service, with all kinds of whatevers. But for the memorial, with the cannon and 5 or 6 columns and a sign, exposed to whoever comes by, a single page suffices. It struck me that Nancy is being treated like liability, while something that seems to me more potentially dangerous is being viewed as nothing of particular concern. I have not had a chance to get copies of these two documents, and Jason did say that there is a lot of white space in the agreement for Nancy and that it could probably be condensed to about 3 pages.]
Public Comment:
Carole Pollard, Allyn Road: [My remarks can be summarized.] First, I mentioned that there are government documents that define hourly and other rates of pay for every imaginable kind of work. To be honest, I seriously doubt that Jason will look at any of that.
Also, work is progressing on the mats for the gym walls. The wood that was used on one group of them was so flimsy that removing it to work on the mats destroyed it, so those pieces will have to be replaced. It's not difficult; we will simply have to get a certain amount of 3/8" plywood and cut pieces to the right size.
Dave Pollard, S.R. 82: Move as quickly as possible on the structural analysis of the building, because it could affect the Commissioners' approval. Believe it or not, we are beginning to run close to the deadline on the decision.
Also, I am not the only person who thinks the stakes on my corner field are not in the right position. They look way too far to the east.
[Blogger: That field is bounded on the west side by Frost Road, which Jason wants to begin preparing for improving, beginning with chip and seal--which I do not understand. Can you chip and seal on dirt, or does something more substantial have to be done first?]
Dave, continuing: That road has been surveyed about four times now. It all comes off the right of way. I would appreciate knowing who did the surveying.
Jason: The man who did it is Steve ---- [Blogger: I lost the last name.] He is with the County Engineer. I don't know if he actually did it.
Dave: The way it looks right now, you would end up with an offset intersection [crossing Rt. 82 on Frost].
Your blogger left after public comment: the trustees were paying bills, and an executive session had been requested to discuss part time employment.
Financial Report: Supplemental appropriations were requested. These were re-allocations within funds.
Jason made a motion to put the 1.5mil renewal levy on the ballot. This is for outside millage for road and bridge.
Then 8 bids for road projects were opened. One is to chip and seal two miles of Winchell Road. [My apologies, but my notes here are not detailed.]
Then bids were opened for St. James, Samuel, Vincent, and John Edward. The low bid was Perrine Asphalt, with $172,561.50.
Some other paving under Issue 2 is also in the works. When all is said and done on that and the township has paid its share , there is still $55,600 in the budget for contracts.
Jason made the motion to have Perrine Asphalt do the paving for John Edward, Vincent, Samuel, and St. James drives, pending the required letter from the state. Vic seconded. Passed.
Zoning: Income from permits, $350.00 There are some additions and signs, and some cleanup on Winchell.
There is a BZA hearing for signs at Mantua Corners. Apparently the meeting has been rescheduled at least once for the convenience of the business owner, who according to John Dickey got the paperwork in the day before the meeting.
Land Bank grant money: Jason and John Dickey are going to Ravenna on July 10 to discuss this with [I believe] Regional Planning. This applies to properties that appear to be abandoned or that appear to be safety issues.
Cemetery Report: Foundations, $680; Burial Fees, $950; Graves $1,500.
Jason thanked Jim Aldrich for mowing at the back of the cemetery and mentioned something about probably compensating him for that work.
Under new business, Vic thought the trustees should sign the bid for the new truck.
Jason explained about that. It comes to $55,845.51.
[Blogger: The next part of the meeting was about the school, and that has been posted.]
There was some discussion about the bank at the intersection of SR 82 and Center Road, and shaving it to improve visibility in hopes of reducing accidents. ODOT would also remove trees that contribute to the problem. An agreement with the home owners will be needed.
Center School Meetings
Jason: I had talked to Todd Peetz about this. He asked about another meeting, and I told him we would like to get them under way and maybe in August meet again.
That seemed OK with John Festa and Vic, and Jason was going to get back in touch with Todd..
Clothing Center Lease: Jason passed out 8 pages [!] of agreement details.
He mentioned having talked about an allowance for repairs and mentioned the arrangement Todd Peetz had described regarding a tenant in Regional Planning's building. That person had been paying $800 per month, and they made a stipulation of an allowance to turn in receipts so there would be a paper trail. Jason expressed some uncertainty about determining hourly rates for work that was done.
Nancy Tafel is very anxious to get this going.
Jason: We need to talk about insurance. The lessee shall carry insurance insuring Mantua Township for $1 million. I think the hold harmless should be in place.
John Festa: I think the policy is going to be standard if they want to be named additional insured. If their policy lapses, you would be notified. He gave a hypothetical situation when Jason expressed some perplexity.
Marie: But if she says that she does not have the money and the insurance would be a hardship?
Vic asked for some clarification about how things had been done and thought that something [in the paperwork] had been changed.
No money changes hands in the clothing giveaway.
Vic also announced that Linda Ehlert had shown up with 15 volunteers, and the walls had been painted. A couple of places will need some touchup.
Then there was some discussion about health insurance.
Website: John Festa had posted additional cemetery rules, and there was some discussion about needing some new sections on the website.
Additional old business, John Festa: This was regarding the Veterans' Memorial paperwork to accept the memorial from the committee. Chris Meduri sent some guidelines that John Festa wants to give to the committee. Frank Horack was not present this evening.
It is one page.
[Blogger: This astonished me: There are 8 pages for someone who is conducting a charitable service, with all kinds of whatevers. But for the memorial, with the cannon and 5 or 6 columns and a sign, exposed to whoever comes by, a single page suffices. It struck me that Nancy is being treated like liability, while something that seems to me more potentially dangerous is being viewed as nothing of particular concern. I have not had a chance to get copies of these two documents, and Jason did say that there is a lot of white space in the agreement for Nancy and that it could probably be condensed to about 3 pages.]
Public Comment:
Carole Pollard, Allyn Road: [My remarks can be summarized.] First, I mentioned that there are government documents that define hourly and other rates of pay for every imaginable kind of work. To be honest, I seriously doubt that Jason will look at any of that.
Also, work is progressing on the mats for the gym walls. The wood that was used on one group of them was so flimsy that removing it to work on the mats destroyed it, so those pieces will have to be replaced. It's not difficult; we will simply have to get a certain amount of 3/8" plywood and cut pieces to the right size.
Dave Pollard, S.R. 82: Move as quickly as possible on the structural analysis of the building, because it could affect the Commissioners' approval. Believe it or not, we are beginning to run close to the deadline on the decision.
Also, I am not the only person who thinks the stakes on my corner field are not in the right position. They look way too far to the east.
[Blogger: That field is bounded on the west side by Frost Road, which Jason wants to begin preparing for improving, beginning with chip and seal--which I do not understand. Can you chip and seal on dirt, or does something more substantial have to be done first?]
Dave, continuing: That road has been surveyed about four times now. It all comes off the right of way. I would appreciate knowing who did the surveying.
Jason: The man who did it is Steve ---- [Blogger: I lost the last name.] He is with the County Engineer. I don't know if he actually did it.
Dave: The way it looks right now, you would end up with an offset intersection [crossing Rt. 82 on Frost].
Your blogger left after public comment: the trustees were paying bills, and an executive session had been requested to discuss part time employment.
Monday, July 6, 2015
Really Deep Roots
After reading the previous post, a resident e-mailed me to say that not enough had been said about Eric Hummel.
Here it is: When the Mantua Center Christian Church underwent remodeling (I forgot to get the year but think it was late in the last century), Eric was the contractor. He worked thoughtfully with the members to keep costs down and do a good job, and I have only heard good things about that project.
Eric was also a charter member of The Mantua Restoration Society when it was formed in 1977, and I recently learned that he is a member of the Ravenna Landmarks Commission.
A person might reasonably conclude that his opinion about the school is worth something.
Here it is: When the Mantua Center Christian Church underwent remodeling (I forgot to get the year but think it was late in the last century), Eric was the contractor. He worked thoughtfully with the members to keep costs down and do a good job, and I have only heard good things about that project.
Eric was also a charter member of The Mantua Restoration Society when it was formed in 1977, and I recently learned that he is a member of the Ravenna Landmarks Commission.
A person might reasonably conclude that his opinion about the school is worth something.
Sunday, July 5, 2015
7-2-15: All In--Another Step
The "All In" is about the school. Slowly, steadily, and more and more irreversibly, the motion is all towards making the school building completely usable. This post will deal with that topic from the July 2 trustees meeting and with some additional perspective.
The routine elements of the meeting's business and public comment will be a separate post.
In the section of the meeting when the trustees gave their reports, the school became the main topic.
Vic: Todd Peetz had brought up trying to contact you (Jason) after July 4 to set up another community meeting about the school. The other thing is that I wanted to bring up the master plan--to begin doing one section of it.
[Note: Later in the meeting, Vic said that he thought the next community meeting should be in August, which would give time enough for several things to have gotten beyond the talking stage.]
John Festa: I think we are ready for that.
Vic: The walk-through scheduled for Monday happened on Tuesday. Doug Fuller wanted to look at locations to see if there were other spots for the elevator. We went through everything and I gave him a set of prints on which Eric Hunmel had sketched locations and advised him to talk to Eric Hummel.
He gave us another add-on but it will be done in phases.
We also need to begin on the structural analysis.
John Festa: We asked what the additional cost from Hal Stamm would be through Dave Sommers to include the elevator but there may be an additional cost up to $1,000 for the elevator and shaft, but that is not to exceed and will be close.
Vic: We are looking at between $9,000 and $10,000. I think we really need to get started on the structural analysis.
John Festa: I agree.
Vic: I would like to put a motion on the floor to go with Dave Sommers and their quotation for the structural engineering by Hal Stamm.
Jason: Second.
Vic: I thought it was a good walkthrough.
Vote: John Festa: Yes. Jason: Yes. Vic: Yes.
Vic: Occupancy permit: We are getting very, very close to getting that. I got a phone call about 1 p.m. today from Dan Tillett to be let into the building at 2. Randy Roberts (Head, Portage County Building Department) was supposed to be there but could not make it. They had some floor plans and did some measurements. So that is getting very close.
Blogger: A while ago I promised to give kind of a playbill of the "cast of characters" whose names keep showing up in the blog. This is as good a time as any. By now this may be irrelevant, but I don't know who reads the blog but didn't grow up knowing who all these people are.
Todd Peetz is head of Portage County Regional Planning. Regional Planning and Zoning work closely together. Todd was asked about a year and a half or more ago to facilitate a series of meetings about the school and its uses. He proposed the four committees that were put into place: Building Assessment, Building Utilization, Grants/Funding, and Volunteers. Regional Planning administers the Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) which got us the $60,000 towards the elevator.
The Building Assessment Committee became something more than a residents' committee when John Festa came forward with a list of professionals that he insisted must be on the committee. He also was adamant about shunting all residents aside from that committee. In a way that doesn't matter--we all know each other and have no reservations about talking with each other when we consider it necessary. From what I can tell, no one has burdened anyone because of our acquaintance, and sharing our knowledge and information has been helpful.
Here are the professionals, in no particular order:
Dan Tillett: Troy Construction, based in Mantua Township. Dan is co-chair of the assessment committee. His company was a major if not the major contractor (as I understand it) on the Friends Church on Rt. 44 just into Auburn Township.
Ron Stamm is partners with Dan in Troy Construction, but has been to perhaps only one of the assessment committee meetings.
Eric Hummel: Hummel Construction, headquarters in Ravenna. Co-chair of the Building Assessment Committyee. Eric, Ron, Dan are all Crestwood graduates and live in the township. Eric played an important role in the renovation of the flagpole in Ravenna and was the major contractor on Acorn Alley and the esplanade in Kent.
Doug Fuller, architect, with Dave Sommers Architects, Kent. Doug was the project manager for the restoration and adaptive reuse of the Kent Hotel. Early on in the committee meetings, things focused around Doug in regard to procedure and process. That is my impression, at least, and my apologies to anyone who just got slighted as a result.
Jeff Benner, Benner Masonry, Mantua. Jeff owns a good deal of property in Mantua Village and has a very nice area next door to the 1929 high school building where a number of high school classes have gone for the informal, socializing part of their annual reunions. Jeff's wife, Edie, is the heart and soul of the Downtown Mantua Revitalization Corporation, which is putting on Art on the Hill this coming weekend, July 11.
Hal Stamm, Civil Engineer. Hal was [I believe] president of Stamm Contracting, a family business for over 100 years, until he retired. He grew up in the area--your blogger is not sure now what part of the Crestwood School District it was in. He is the person who will be doing the structural analysis on the school building. He did the structural analysis for the flagpole project in Ravenna.
John Zeit, architect. John is retired from Stark State College in Canton, is dedicated to preserving the school building, has served the assessment committee as secretary, and has provided considerable information for use in the project. He also designed my house; I have known him since 1980 or 1985.
Jim Zella, project manager. Jim lives in Hiram and has designed a lovely addition to the physical plant of McKenzie Creamery on Pioneer Trail just west of S.R. 700. He has spent his career in the construction industry, building a number of upscale houses, among other activities.
Frank Horack, Mantua Township. Electrical contractor. Chairperson (or at least spokesperson) for the Veterans' Memorial Committee.
Cal Brant, Brant Carpentry. Cal is a meticulous craftsman who almost single handedly renovated the township hall. He finished my house on the strength of a handshake after I fired the person who had begun the project. Cal's handshake was worth more than the first person's contract.
Hal, Dan, Ron, and Cal are all members of families who can trace their histories in Mantua and Shalersville townships back to the middle of the 1800's. At least a couple of them were students in classes I taught during the three years I worked at Crestwood, but I am not going to embarrass any of us by divulging the specifics.
But here's the point: These committees--all of them, not just the Building Assessment Committee, are populated by people whose roots and relationships with each other go back to childhood and beyond. This is our home, and by the time any of us entered first grade (many of us at the Center), the school had been there for close to 30 years. For us, it has always been there, and we cannot imagine the township without it.
When the Building Assessment Committee met for the first time, logically enough in the school, not everyone believed that it should remain. By the time the first building tour ended and everyone was back in the gym, that skepticism had been abandoned. The building was clearly sound and worth keeping and using. As one key member of the committee pointedly made clear: "So from here on, it's all forward."
A disclaimer: The statements about the members of the Building Assessment Committee are accurate as far as I know. This section of the post was not a research project. If there are inaccuracies, they are not intentional.
The routine elements of the meeting's business and public comment will be a separate post.
In the section of the meeting when the trustees gave their reports, the school became the main topic.
Vic: Todd Peetz had brought up trying to contact you (Jason) after July 4 to set up another community meeting about the school. The other thing is that I wanted to bring up the master plan--to begin doing one section of it.
[Note: Later in the meeting, Vic said that he thought the next community meeting should be in August, which would give time enough for several things to have gotten beyond the talking stage.]
John Festa: I think we are ready for that.
Vic: The walk-through scheduled for Monday happened on Tuesday. Doug Fuller wanted to look at locations to see if there were other spots for the elevator. We went through everything and I gave him a set of prints on which Eric Hunmel had sketched locations and advised him to talk to Eric Hummel.
He gave us another add-on but it will be done in phases.
We also need to begin on the structural analysis.
John Festa: We asked what the additional cost from Hal Stamm would be through Dave Sommers to include the elevator but there may be an additional cost up to $1,000 for the elevator and shaft, but that is not to exceed and will be close.
Vic: We are looking at between $9,000 and $10,000. I think we really need to get started on the structural analysis.
John Festa: I agree.
Vic: I would like to put a motion on the floor to go with Dave Sommers and their quotation for the structural engineering by Hal Stamm.
Jason: Second.
Vic: I thought it was a good walkthrough.
Vote: John Festa: Yes. Jason: Yes. Vic: Yes.
Vic: Occupancy permit: We are getting very, very close to getting that. I got a phone call about 1 p.m. today from Dan Tillett to be let into the building at 2. Randy Roberts (Head, Portage County Building Department) was supposed to be there but could not make it. They had some floor plans and did some measurements. So that is getting very close.
Blogger: A while ago I promised to give kind of a playbill of the "cast of characters" whose names keep showing up in the blog. This is as good a time as any. By now this may be irrelevant, but I don't know who reads the blog but didn't grow up knowing who all these people are.
Todd Peetz is head of Portage County Regional Planning. Regional Planning and Zoning work closely together. Todd was asked about a year and a half or more ago to facilitate a series of meetings about the school and its uses. He proposed the four committees that were put into place: Building Assessment, Building Utilization, Grants/Funding, and Volunteers. Regional Planning administers the Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) which got us the $60,000 towards the elevator.
The Building Assessment Committee became something more than a residents' committee when John Festa came forward with a list of professionals that he insisted must be on the committee. He also was adamant about shunting all residents aside from that committee. In a way that doesn't matter--we all know each other and have no reservations about talking with each other when we consider it necessary. From what I can tell, no one has burdened anyone because of our acquaintance, and sharing our knowledge and information has been helpful.
Here are the professionals, in no particular order:
Dan Tillett: Troy Construction, based in Mantua Township. Dan is co-chair of the assessment committee. His company was a major if not the major contractor (as I understand it) on the Friends Church on Rt. 44 just into Auburn Township.
Ron Stamm is partners with Dan in Troy Construction, but has been to perhaps only one of the assessment committee meetings.
Eric Hummel: Hummel Construction, headquarters in Ravenna. Co-chair of the Building Assessment Committyee. Eric, Ron, Dan are all Crestwood graduates and live in the township. Eric played an important role in the renovation of the flagpole in Ravenna and was the major contractor on Acorn Alley and the esplanade in Kent.
Doug Fuller, architect, with Dave Sommers Architects, Kent. Doug was the project manager for the restoration and adaptive reuse of the Kent Hotel. Early on in the committee meetings, things focused around Doug in regard to procedure and process. That is my impression, at least, and my apologies to anyone who just got slighted as a result.
Jeff Benner, Benner Masonry, Mantua. Jeff owns a good deal of property in Mantua Village and has a very nice area next door to the 1929 high school building where a number of high school classes have gone for the informal, socializing part of their annual reunions. Jeff's wife, Edie, is the heart and soul of the Downtown Mantua Revitalization Corporation, which is putting on Art on the Hill this coming weekend, July 11.
Hal Stamm, Civil Engineer. Hal was [I believe] president of Stamm Contracting, a family business for over 100 years, until he retired. He grew up in the area--your blogger is not sure now what part of the Crestwood School District it was in. He is the person who will be doing the structural analysis on the school building. He did the structural analysis for the flagpole project in Ravenna.
John Zeit, architect. John is retired from Stark State College in Canton, is dedicated to preserving the school building, has served the assessment committee as secretary, and has provided considerable information for use in the project. He also designed my house; I have known him since 1980 or 1985.
Jim Zella, project manager. Jim lives in Hiram and has designed a lovely addition to the physical plant of McKenzie Creamery on Pioneer Trail just west of S.R. 700. He has spent his career in the construction industry, building a number of upscale houses, among other activities.
Frank Horack, Mantua Township. Electrical contractor. Chairperson (or at least spokesperson) for the Veterans' Memorial Committee.
Cal Brant, Brant Carpentry. Cal is a meticulous craftsman who almost single handedly renovated the township hall. He finished my house on the strength of a handshake after I fired the person who had begun the project. Cal's handshake was worth more than the first person's contract.
Hal, Dan, Ron, and Cal are all members of families who can trace their histories in Mantua and Shalersville townships back to the middle of the 1800's. At least a couple of them were students in classes I taught during the three years I worked at Crestwood, but I am not going to embarrass any of us by divulging the specifics.
But here's the point: These committees--all of them, not just the Building Assessment Committee, are populated by people whose roots and relationships with each other go back to childhood and beyond. This is our home, and by the time any of us entered first grade (many of us at the Center), the school had been there for close to 30 years. For us, it has always been there, and we cannot imagine the township without it.
When the Building Assessment Committee met for the first time, logically enough in the school, not everyone believed that it should remain. By the time the first building tour ended and everyone was back in the gym, that skepticism had been abandoned. The building was clearly sound and worth keeping and using. As one key member of the committee pointedly made clear: "So from here on, it's all forward."
A disclaimer: The statements about the members of the Building Assessment Committee are accurate as far as I know. This section of the post was not a research project. If there are inaccuracies, they are not intentional.
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