Serving Lucas, Ottawa, Sandusky and Wood Counties
The Lake Township trustees held their latest regular meeting on June 16, discussing several issues while also establishing a date for the final decision on the rezoning request for 508 Union St.
The trustees approved Tuesday, June 30 at 6 p.m. inside the township’s administration building as the date for their final decision regarding the requested rezoning of 508 Union St. from residential to heavy industrial. Residents are urged to attend the meeting to discuss their thoughts on the issue.
Trustee Melanie Bowen-Greenwald said the township has gone through the process. They have to provide a 10-day notice regarding the meeting for residents, which she said will be posted in The Press (see Classifieds) and the Sentinel-Tribune.
“We went through the planning commission, we went through the (township) zoning (board), now it comes to us,” she said. “That will give us plenty of time. Hopefully we’re not here until midnight, but if we have to be, we will.”
Bowen-Greenwald also urged residents to reach out to them with any questions or comments. She can be reached at melaniebg@laketwp.com. Fellow trustee Lorie Davis can be found at loried@laketwp.com and Kurt Schwamberger can be reached at kurts@laketwp.com.
All three can also be reached at 419-838-6536. Bowen-Greenwald is extension 103, Schwamberger is extension 104 and Davis is extension 105.
Bowen-Greenwald said the three trustees were slated to receive a packet on June 17 with all the notes up to this point, and they’ll review it over the next two weeks. She also said they recorded the zoning hearing and have access to that for review.
Handicap path
Bowen-Greenwald and Schwamberger met with David Bowers of Bowers Asphalt and Paving, Inc. recently, and he agreed to put in a new handicap ramp leading to the existing walking path at Friendship Park.
Bowen-Greenwald said Bowers is donating the walking path, which will be 10x7. She said a bronze plaque will be made for all the people who donated to the project, which was done 100 percent without using taxpayer money.
“This will help to allow handicapped adults and children, not just children, be able to get out there,” she said. “They won't have to go through the grass. They won't have to go through mud if it's wet. They’ll have a nice path. They can get out there, go on the ramp, and they can spend a nice day fishing.
“I'm very proud of that, and a lot of people worked very hard on it, so if you are out there and you want to go out on that, go right ahead. It's really neat, and hopefully it'll get a lot of use this summer. Thank you to everyone who donated.”
The project’s estimated cost is $40,000.
Stop sign vandalism
Lake Township administrator Mark Hummer reported that three stop signs had to be replaced in the township the past month due to graffiti, which he said costs a “couple hundred dollars each.”
Resident Jennifer Zam said it wasn’t the first time she’s heard of that issue, and she asked if it was a regular occurrence and where it was happening.
Hummer said yes and that it was in the Moline area.
“It has become a little more regular than we care,” he said.
Zam said she would share the info online in an effort to have people keep an eye out and try to find the culprit(s).
In other road-related news, another resident asked the township to look at the stop sign on Ayers Road westbound at East Broadway, which Hummer said he would look into.
Upcoming events
Music in the Park will take place June 26, July 10, July 17, Aug. 7 and Aug. 14. Food will be provided at 5:30 p.m., followed by music at 6:30 p.m.
The Motorcycle Show & Friendship Day will be July 19.
The township is hosting a 250th celebration for the country on July 3-4 in Friendship Park. Trustee Davis said there will be a DJ and a band on July 3 from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m., and there will be fireworks on the fourth. They’re also working on other kinds of activities.
Bowen-Greenwald said the fireworks are being paid for via donations.
The “Wreaths Across America” Car Show has been rescheduled for Saturday, Aug. 22 with a rain date of Aug. 23.
Other new business
In other new business, aside from scheduling the rezoning hearing decision, township trustees approved $1,771.44 to LH Automotive for repairs to the power steering on the 2018 Dodge Charger L41 used by the police department, the transfer of $1,000 from the general fund to the gas tax fund, and the fire department’s entry into an annual preventative maintenance and vehicle inspection agreement with H&S Apparatus Repair.
A recommendation to hire Isabella Dazley as a probationary firefighter II at the hourly rate of $19.86 was also approved. She will be on probation for a period of one year effective the date of hire. Fire chief Brandon Rosebrock reported that she went through the certification program at Penta.
Resident portion
Bill Keller asked the trustees to find better ways to reach residents in terms of informing them about the potential road levy.
“Your town hall meetings don’t work,” he said. “We have a pretty good house tonight, but normally you get the same eight to 10 people that are here every week. We’ve got to find ways to get people here, and we need to inform these people. They don’t realize how much money our road department saves them by doing stuff themselves.”
Keller said the township should threaten to cut services like the schools do if they can’t get something passed.
This past fall, the township tried to pass a three-year, one-time road levy, but it failed. The intent of it was to bump the township up enough to catch up.
“That didn’t pass, but we didn’t do a very good job in disseminating the information,” Bowen-Greenwald said. “I’ll be the first to tell you that.”
Now the township is looking to potentially add a levy onto the November ballot. Hummer said they are now responsible for 71 miles of road maintenance.
Township trustees put together an analysis of each road, with a good, fair or poor designation. The chart listed the year each road was last paved or when it was last tar-and-chipped.
On the list of roads that need to be resurfaced in the near future are Lemoyne Road from the tracks to SR 795, Luckey Road from Moline-Martin Road to the turnpike Walbridge Road from the cemetery to SR 51 and Lemoyne Road from Walbridge Road north to Northwood limit.
Three additions that need to be resurfaced in the near future are the Johnson Addition, Woodville Gardens and Emch Road off of Tracy Road.
The township’s renewal levy that was just passed in May was based on property tax valuations from 1990. If the township wanted to update that, they would have to pass a replacement levy.
“Roads are something that all of us use,” Bowen-Greenwald said. “Every single one of us use the roads. We’re falling behind in paving.”
On the topic of the latest public hearing with the township’s zoning board for 508 Union St., Zam urged the trustees to streamline the zoning process to keep people from getting really heated.
“If we can look at the structure and maybe make it so it’s more supportive and conducive for everybody to participate (that would be good),” she said.
Kelly Yetter piggybacked off that topic and requested that more time to speak be given to residents in comparison to the requestor of the rezoning.
“We get a lousy three minutes to try and defend our neighborhood, and the guys that are for the zoning change, who are asking for it, they can talk as long as they want,” she said. “It seems a little unfair. Maybe we could have four or five minutes each?”
Lastly, Hank Buzza requested more attendance at the parks committee meetings, and he’s also looking for more volunteers at the Music in the Park events.
“We’re getting too old to do it ourselves,” he said. “We need some young people to come out and help us. There’s only eight of us right now.”
The parks committee meets the second Wednesday of each month at 4:30 p.m. inside the administration building.
