Township departments present 2022 reports

February 28, 2023

by Laura Bednar

Feb. 6 township trustees meeting

The service, parks and planning departments presented accomplishments in 2022 and future goals in their annual reports.

In 2022, the service department replaced three HVAC heat pumps in the Bath Center Building and the Historic Town Hall project was complete. Service Director Caine Collins said landscaping at town hall will be done in the spring.

The department received 428 total requests for service for the year. Collins broke down the number of requests by category with drainage, building maintenance and miscellaneous concerns as the top three. Miscellaneous includes picking up dead animals, retrieving down power lines and moving a mattress, couches or other large item put out for trash.

In 2023, Collins said the department plans to hire a full-time fleet mechanic, replace one five-ton truck and complete design specifications for a building addition and siding repair on the service building, which will be bid out in 2024.

Parks

There were 1,840 events held in Bath parks in 2022. Scheduled events included football, lacrosse, baseball and soccer games, shelter reservations and tennis court reservations. Parks Director Alan Garner said last year the department made progress at the North Fork Preserve, installing a 10-car parking lot, park entry sign and flowerbed, and new drive access. At the Bath Baseball Park, new foul poles were installed on field 8 and the parking lot spaces were striped.

Looking to 2023, Bath Parks will use a GPS unit, drone and other software to update the trail system. Other goals include working on the Revere Wood Trail in Bath Hill Park, crack sealing the North Fork Trail and rehabbing and painting the Regal Beagle in Bath Nature Preserve. The North Fork Preserve is getting closer to completion with the goal of opening it to the public this year, according to Garner. Employees are continuing to work on the Triple Loop Trail at NFP, and the main house and barn will be restored and renovated.

Planning and zoning

Planning Director and Zoning Inspector William Funk said over the past ten years, 158 new residential dwelling permits were issued in Bath. In 2022, planning and zoning issued 147 permits, and commissions reviewed a variety of cases. The appearance review commission reviewed site and elevation plans for I of the Needle and the new entry to Revere Stadium.

The zoning commission and board of trustees both voted against a zoning change for the property at 1075 Ghent Rd. from a residential to a business district. The property owner had proposed building a dental office on the property. With a 3-1 vote, the commission recommended to approve a zoning change at 4073 Medina Rd. from a B-3 business district for office, research and business to a B-2 community district for the purpose of building a Sheetz gas station, Texas Roadhouse restaurant and third building. Funk said the applicants are currently working with the county and performing a traffic study in the area. The application will come before the board of trustees within a couple months.

The township bid out a new contract for waste management, which was awarded to Rumpke Waste from July 1, 2022, through June 30, 2025. The semi-annual rates through June 2023 are: curbside, $113.34; senior curbside $103.44; garage door, $295.68; senior garage door, $267.54.

In other news:

Trustees approved the hire of Kasha Brackett as township executive assistant at $28 an hour.
The township will apply for a Northeast Ohio Public Energy Council community grant, which, if received, will go toward township lighting projects. Administrator Vito Sinopoli said the township is usually given between $5,000 and $8,000. Collins said the new lighting installed in the past uses one-fifth the energy of the previous lights. ∞