Disclaimer: Video links are posted as a courtesy to our residents and are not owned by Deerfield Township. Videos are recorded by a third party. Be advised that the official meeting minutes are recorded by our Fiscal Officer and approved by the Board of Trustees. These minutes are posted below for your convenience and may be obtained by request from our Fiscal Officer.
Trustee Meeting – January 09, 2023
The Board of Deerfield Township Trustees met for a combined Organizational Meeting and Regular Meeting on Monday, January 9, 2023, at 6:00pm, with Trustees Charles “Ed” Dean, Mark Bann and Tiffany Havens present. Chairman Bann opened the meeting with the Pledge of Allegiance. Tiffany made a motion to dispense with the reading of the minutes from the December 29, 2022 meeting and approve them as written. Ed seconded the motion and the roll call vote was as follows:
Ms. Havens Yes Mr. Dean Yes
Mr. Bann
Abstained
Tiffany moved to accept the December 2022 financial reports as presented. Mark seconded the motion and the roll call vote was unanimous.
The meeting was turned over to the Fiscal Officer who called for nominations for Chairman for a period of either one or two years. Mark nominated Ed Dean for Chairman for a period of one year. Tiffany moved to close the nominations. Ed seconded the motion and the roll call vote was unanimous. The Fiscal Officer called the roll for each member’s vote for Chairman. Mark voted for Ed Dean; Ed Voted for Ed Dean Tiffany voted for Ed Dean. Ed Dean was duly elected as Chairman for a period of one year.
The Fiscal Officer called for nominations for Vice Chairman for a period of either one or two years. Ed Dean nominated Mark Bann for Vice Chairman for a period of one year. Ed made a motion to close the nominations. Tiffany seconded the motion and the roll call vote was unanimous. The Fiscal Officer called the roll for each member’s vote for Vice Chairman. Mark voted for Mark Bann; Ed voted for Mark Bann; Tiffany voted for Mark Bann. Mark Bann was duly elected as Vice Chairman for a period of one year. The Fiscal Officer then turned the meeting over to the Chairman.
Communications:
The Court of Common Pleas of Portage County, Ohio notified Deerfield Township that per R.C. 5723.01(A)(3) and the Notice of Forfeiture served by this court about December 29, 2022 to the Portage County Land Reutilization Corporation “(PCLRC)”, the PCLRC petitions and informs the Court that the PCLRC accepts the offer to forfeit the real property described in the Notice of Forfeiture (PPN 08-029-00-00-007-00) owned by Lawrence A. Jones and requests that the Court enter an order forfeiting the real property to the PCLRC and then certify that order to the Portage County Auditor.
Day, Time and Place of Meetings:
Ed Dean moved to adopt Resolution No. 23-01, thereby, to hold the Trustee Meetings on the second Monday of each month, at 6:00pm, at the Deerfield Town Hall located at 1450 State Route 14, Deerfield, Ohio 44411.
Tiffany seconded the motion and the roll call vote was as follows: Mr. Bann Yes
Mr. Dean Yes Ms. Havens Yes
Adopted: January 09, 2023
Rate of Pay:
Tiffany Havens moved to adopt Resolution No. 23-02, thereby to increase township employee rates by 3%, in exception of (B) & (I) which will increase to $15/Hour. Rates are as follows:
(A) Fire Chief
(B) Class 4 EMR
(C) Fire Dept EMT-B
(D) Fire Dept EMT-I
(E) Fire Dept Paramedic
(F) Fire Dept Assistant Chiefs
(G) Road Superintendent
(H) Buildings and Ground Superintendent (I) Cemetery Sexton
(J) Part Time Help
(K) Assistant Fiscal Officer
(L) EMS Coordinator & Scheduler
$811.84/Month $ 15.00/Hour $ 15.59/Hour $ 16.25/Hour $ 17.21/Hour $ 17.21/Hour $ 22.06/Hour $ 18.76/Hour $ 22.06/Hour $ 15.00/Hour $ 16.22/Hour
Add $0.50/Hr On-Duty @ Station
Ed Dean seconded the motion and the roll call vote was as follows: Mr. Bann Yes Mr. Dean Yes Ms. Havens Yes
Adopted: January 9, 2023
Bonds:
Ed Dean made a motion to maintain the present $5,000 bond for the Road Superintendent and Assistant Road Superintendent, Buildings and Grounds. Tiffany seconded the motion and the roll call vote was unanimous.
Employment Policy:
Mark made a motion to maintain the following employment policies as follows:
Full-Time employees are offered health insurance. The elected officials have opted out due to not having the funds. The Township will pay 85% of the premiums and the employee will pay 15% of their premiums. These percentages will be in effect for the March 1 renewal.
Vacation time for the Road Superintendent/Cemetery Sexton and Buildings and Grounds Supervisor are two (2) weeks per year, with the year ending December 31st. Vacation time will increase to three (3) weeks per year after employed ten (10) years. Timothy Suderman has been
employed for ten (10) years during 2023 & eligible for three (3) weeks. Gary Leifheit is eligible for two (2) weeks. Vacation may be rolled over up to a maximum of one year.
The comp time earned for the Road Superintendent/Cemetery Sexton and Buildings and Grounds Supervisor as one and one-half hours of comp time for every hour of overtime logged and may pay, on a quarterly basis, any hours over 24 hours logged. Maximum hours to keep as comp time is 240 hours.
The following are paid holidays for full time employees: New Year’s Day; Martin Luther King Day (another day can be taken in lieu of this day); Presidents Day; Memorial Day; Juneteenth, Independence Day; Labor Day, Veterans Day; Columbus Day; Thanksgiving Day, Black Friday and Christmas Day.
The Trustees require the Road Superintendent, Cemetery Sexton, Buildings and Grounds Superintendent and Fire Chief to be in attendance or provide a written monthly report to the Trustees prior to the meeting held on the 2nd Monday of each month.
The Road Superintendent, Cemetery Sexton and Buildings and Grounds Supervisor is eligible for three (3) sick days per year, with an additional five (5) sick days per year if hospitalized. If all sick days are not used during the year, they will not accumulate from one year to the next.
Tiffany seconded the motion and the roll call vote was unanimous.
Mileage Reimbursement:
Ed made a motion to pay 65.5 cents per mile for mileage expense reimbursement for 2023. Tiffany seconded the motion and the roll call vote was unanimous.
Cemetery Fees:
Ed made a motion to adopt Resolution No. 23-03, thereby, to charge the cemetery fees as follows:
Cemetery Lots: Residents
Non-Residents Burials:
Residents
Non-Residents
Infant Resident
Infant Non-Resident Cremation – Resident Cremation – Non Resident Layout Fee
Buildings:
Town Hall Fee
Chapel Fee
$350.00 (Single Grave) $1,500.00 (Single Grave)
$500.00* $600.00* $ 50.00 $ 60.00 $250.00 $300.00 $125.00
$100.00 $ 50.00
Vault Burials after 2:00pm will be charged an additional $100.00*.
$250.00 additional for Saturday burials and $300.00 additional for Sunday and Holiday burials
Tiffany Havens seconded the motion and the roll call vote was as follows: Mr. Dean Yes
Adopted: January 9, 2023
Ms. Havens Yes Mr. Bann Yes
Ambulance Fees:
Ed Dean moved to adopt Resolution No. 23-04, thereby, to charge immediately, as follows:
- Resident & Non Resident – Basic Life Support
- Resident & Non Resident – Advance Life Support I
- Resident & Non Resident – Advance Life Support II
- Resident & Non Resident – Non Transport
- Resident & Non Resident – Mileage Charge (Loaded)
the ambulance fees, effective
$ 850.00 $1,000.00 $1,200.00
$ 300.00
$ 16.50/Mile
Mutual Aid to the following townships shall be soft-billed the same as Deerfield Township residents: Atwater Township; Berlin Township; Edinburg Township and Palmyra Township.
Tiffany seconded the motion and the roll call vote was as follows: Mr. Dean Yes Ms. Havens Yes Mr. Bann Yes
Adopted: January 9, 2023
Town Hall Rental Fees:
Ed Dean moved to adopt Resolution No. 23-05, thereby, to set the Town Hall Rental fees as follows:
Sunday through Saturday:
Deerfield Residents 0-50 People
51-100 People
101-200 People Non-Residents
0-50 People 51-100 People 101-200 People
$100.00 $175.00 $300.00
$350.00 $450.00 $650.00
All rentals require a minimum $250 refundable deposit which will be returned after 14 days. There will be a minimum of $50 (up to $250) withheld from the deposit for cleaning if hall is not cleaned after rental. Wedding receptions and fundraisers will require a minimum of $750 deposit. No confetti, hay, straw, open flame candles, glitter or livestock will be permitted.
The pricing and rules above will be effective for new rentals, effective January 9, 2023. Prior rentals made will be honored at the previously quoted pricing. The individual renting the Deerfield Town Hall must be in attendance during the entire event. Rentals that have alcohol requires a Deputy from Portage County Sheriff’s Office in uniform and not be present as a guest to the event.
Organizations holding events other than meetings will be charged a rental fee of $50.00 to assist with reimbursement of costs incurred to Deerfield Township.
Tiffany Havens seconded the motion and the roll call vote was as follows: Mr. Dean Yes
Ms. Havens Yes Mr. Bann Yes
Adopted: January 9, 2023
Fire Department Expense Reimbursement Pool:
Ed Dean made a motion to adopt Resolution No. 23-06, thereby, to maintain the fire department expense reimbursement pool of $12,000.00.
Tiffany seconded the motion and the roll call vote was as follows: Mr. Dean Yes Ms. Havens Yes Mr. Bann Yes
Adopted: January 9, 2023
Ed Dean made a motion to adjourn the organizational meeting and go into the regularly scheduled Trustee meeting. Mark seconded the motion and the roll call vote was unanimous.
Fire Department:
Breanna Westover submitted a letter of recommendation for Scott Simmons to become the next chief for Deerfield Township. The letter was read aloud at the meeting. Hiring of a new Deerfield Fire Chief will be discussed at the February meeting.
Ryan Shankle attended the meeting to formally resign his position with Deerfield Township Fire Department.
Vaughn Sutcliffe submitted a written report for the fire department on activity since the last meeting, of which 7 calls were made. Vaughn will provide a full report on 2022 activity at the next meeting.
Ed made a motion to pay to replace the tire on Unit No. 1411. Mark seconded the motion and the roll call vote was unanimous.
The fascia was replaced on the back of the front building due to wind damage. Three (3) night lights were replaced on the back building with LED lights.
Bruce Whitcher resigned from the Deerfield Township Fire Department due to lack of time.
Deerfield Township Fire Department received an invoice for the SCBA’s in the amount of $107,125, of which will be reimbursed via a Grant. Chets Water invoice was turned in.
The new tailgate for Unit No. 1426, the pick-up truck has come in and installed by Nick Lam. Lowes purchases included LED Lights, C Batteries and Wire Connectors.
Mark made a motion to reimburse Scott Simmons $67.44 for the purchase of snow shovels. Ed seconded the motion and the roll call vote was unanimous.
Mark made a motion to reimburse Scott Simmons $75.00 for the reimbursement of training fees. Ed seconded the motion and the roll call vote was unanimous.
The Fire Department Association held its annual awards/Christmas Party. Awards were given for years of service to the Deerfield Fire Department members as follows:
Chuck Little Derek McCoy Zachary Freyn
40 Years
24 Years
Top Responder with 176 Calls
The members voted Chief Vaughn Sutcliffe firefighter of the year.
A Boaters Safety Class will be at the Deerfield Fire Station on March 11, 2023 from 9:00am to 5:00pm presented by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.
The ambulance broke down today. The Trustees and Fire members are looking into options for repair. Ed Dean made a motion to pay for the most competitive repair shop to repair the ambulance. Mark seconded the motion and the roll call vote was unanimous.
Road Department: The Road Department has been working on cold patch.
The Road Department is looking into costs to chip and seal, top coat & potentially pave Watson, Fewtown and Bandy Roads and would like to do in 2023 if the money is available in the budget. Ed is working with Mahoning County to possibly make improvements to German Church Road.
The Lo Pro was sold in 2022 at auction. Currently, there is a one (1) year + lead time with a 195-220k cost to replace. In time, this truck will need to be replaced. It’s a possibility the new trucks are too tall to fit in the existing garage.
Mark made a motion to certify Deerfield Township’s road mileage as 16.267 miles. Ed seconded the motion and the roll call vote was unanimous.
Buildings and Grounds: The signs received via grant have all been put in. Timmy Suderman wanted to make everyone aware that they do not set the guidelines for the placement nor height of the signs. Some signs were added in locations there previously was not a sign.
New Business: Mark made a motion to pay for the Ohio Township Association Training in Columbus including hotel, mileage, admission fee & one (1) meal. Tiffany seconded the motion and the roll call vote was unanimous.
With no further business to discuss, Ed Dean made a motion to adjourn the meeting and pay these bills. Mark seconded the motion and the roll call vote was unanimous.
Revenues received: See Revenue Receipt Register attached.
The following bills were presented for Trustees’ inspection and approval: See Payment Listing attached.
Meeting adjourned at 7:30pm.
_____________________________ Chairman
_______________________________ Fiscal Officer