Trumbull officials to fill position

March 31, 2010 at 12:00a.m.

By ED RUNYAN

WARREN

Trumbull County commissioners today are expected to hire Melvin R. Harris Jr. of Howland to the newly created county position of mobility management coordinator.

Harris will help all of the public and private transportation providers in Trumbull County work together more efficiently, said Gary Engstrom, director of the county’s Office of Elderly Affairs, who will supervise Harris.

For example, Harris will examine current transportation needs and determine whether one provider can serve clients from various programs at the same time, such as senior citizens and pregnant teens, Engstrom said.

Among the programs offering transportation are Niles-Trumbull Transit Service, Department of Job and Family Services, and Trumbull County Office of Elderly Affairs.

Before that can happen, Harris will have to meet with the organizations and determine how to modify requirements to allow mixing of services.

The county eventually hopes to combine dispatching for all of the organizations into one office, Engstrom said.

Harris, who currently works as a planner for the Portage County Planning Commission and formerly managed the Cleveland Greyhound bus terminal, will earn $35,000 per year plus county benefits.

His pay will come from a $48,000 grant from the Ohio Department of Transportation and $12,000 in matching funds from transportation providers such as Community Bus Services and the Area Agency on Aging.

In other business, commissioners are expected to approve a 60 percent tax abatement for 10 years for Flex Strut Inc., 2900 Commonwealth Ave. NE, off of North River Road, so it can hire an additional 10 full-time employees and invest $2.25 million to $3.25 million over the next three years.

The company has expanded a couple of times in recent years, and previous abatements granted by the commissioners have already expired, said Frank Fuda, county commissioner.

Flex Strut, founded in 1994, manufactures metal framing pieces.

Today’s commissioners meeting will start at 9 a.m. at the Trumbull Career and Technical Center, Lecture Hall A, 528 Educational Highway, Champion.