BOARDMAN Pellin returns to EMS rotation

The ambulance company would be granted 50 extra service days during the contract period.
By JoANNE VIVIANO
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
BOARDMAN -- Township trustees have voted to settle a $1 million lawsuit with Pellin Emergency Medical Service by entering into an unprecedented contract agreement with the company.
The move was made Monday during a board meeting after a long closed-door session by trustees Thomas P. Costello and Elaine R. Mancini. John C. Cox did not attend because of family reasons.
The company had sued after township officials removed the company last year from its rotation of ambulance companies called to respond to emergencies. Township Administrator Curt B. Seditz said the lawsuit, filed in February in U.S. District Court in Akron, would be withdrawn and Pellin and the township would enter a two-year contract beginning Thursday.
The contract would guarantee that Pellin is one of three ambulance companies responding to calls. Pellin would be granted calls every third day. Also, the company would be granted 50 extra service days during the contract, a compromise reached to make up for time when the township did not use the company, Seditz said.
Other companies in the rotation are Clemente and Rural Metro. They do not have contracts. Seditz said the companies have always operated on a memorandum of understanding. This is the first contract, he said.
The nine-page contract also sets forth standards for response time and patient care and means for dealing with violations and disputes, Seditz said.
Township officials suspended Pellin from the rotation for five days last November because of concerns and complaints over care in four instances. Officials sought to remove the company from the rotation permanently last December, but a court order in May mandated that the company be placed back on the list.
Other action: Also at the meeting:
*Trustees voted to support a grant application seeking $100,000 to help clean up an abandoned gas station at 5191 Southern Blvd. at Indianola Road. The grant is offered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
URobinwood Lane School second-grader James Marco received a new red Timberland Pass Roadmaster bicycle, presented by township police Capt. Steve Balog and Molly Prosser of AAA/Ohio Motorists Association. The bicycle was presented through a program called Helmet Smart. Local police issue "citations" to youngsters wearing bicycle helmets. Citations are redeemable for food products and amusement park discounts. Drawings are held to give away new bicycles.
UTrustees agreed to allocate $12,000 to the Boardman Schools Community Television Network and studio for start-up costs to run Armstrong Cable channel 19 and $35,000 for 2002 operation costs. The funds would come from Armstrong Cable franchise fees.
UTrustees appointed Youngstown lawyer Larry D. Wilkes at $125 per hour to assist the county prosecutor's office in defending the township police department against a lawsuit filed by Connie Hightower of Youngstown. Hightower alleges that officers used excessive force when citing her for driving under suspension.