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Springfield officials can use settlement for roads, bridges
NEW SPRINGFIELD
Township officials were informed by the state auditor that they may use a $2 million settlement from Essroc only for roads and bridges, Trustee Robert Orr said at Wednesday’s meeting.
The township will get the settlement in lieu of road reconstruction in the area of Rapp Road that was the site of years of strip mining. The original agreement was with Carbon Limestone, which later sold mining rights to Essroc. Some residents had wanted the road restored, but an engineer told trustees months ago that the strip mining has left he area in a condition that makes this impossible.
Orr said that fiscal officer Patti Gibson checked with the state auditor, who informed the township that since the money is coming to the township as the result of a road settlement, it can only be spent on roads or bridges.
Orr said he agreed with one resident’s comment that the township needs sanitary sewers in New Springfield more than it needs roads. “Sewers in New Springfield need to happen,” but he said that sewers are “the business of the county and its engineers.” Orr said after the meeting that sewage had been found in New Springfield creeks and that sometimes a sewage smell is noticeable.
Also Wednesday, Engineer Dave Bakalar of Thomas Fok & Associates, Youngstown, opened bids for a Rapp Road upgrade that will fix a high road-crown which affects visibility and will remedy soft berms.
Bidders are: Butch & McCree Paving, Hillsville, Pa., $138,601; SET, Lowellville $149,421; R.T. Vernal Paving, North Lima, $136,337; and Barbicas Construction Co., Akron, $154,739.
Engineers will review the bids and recommend one. The county prosecutor and the Ohio Public Works Commission also will review the bid recommendation before trustees award a contract.
Township firefighter and EMS member Richard Nelson was unanimously placed on investigatory suspension effective immediately. Trustees would not comment further. Trustees also accepted the resignation of firefighter Glenn Corey due to family and work commitments.
Danny, the township’s new police dog, was introduced to those attending the meeting, and Police Chief Matthew Mohn said the dog began working May 22 and already has been used 13 times.
EMS Captain Karen Philibin reported that the dog is considered a member of the police force, and the EMS personnel have been trained in veterinary protocols for treating him if he should become ill or injured while on duty.
Mohn said the police department’s new 2013 Ford utility vehicle will be on the road as soon as it is equipped. The vehicle brings to fleet to five vehicles.