Trustees approve emergency A/C repairs for police station

by Melissa Martin

Aug. 4 township trustees meeting

Hinckley Township’s board of trustees approved $5,100 in emergency repairs after the No. 2 air conditioning unit at the township’s police department broke during a recent heat wave.

Police Chief Michael Schroll said the unit was showing signs of distress earlier this summer, at which time he approved repairs, which included sealing and recharging of the unit.

“Well, that reseal made it two months,” he told the board, noting that the patrol room was back up to 78 degrees again, which prompted him to get a more thorough inspection.

Schroll said it was determined that the condensing unit and evaporator coil needed replacement. Trustees approved the request.

The board also approved a request by Service Superintendent Mike Behary to install Insta-Chains and a bed vibratory kit on his department’s new Kenworth truck. Cross Truck will perform the work, he said, at a cost of $5,500.

The board also approved Behary’s request for appropriations for road repairs on S. Canyon Drive not to exceed $5,000. Behary said Green Leveling would perform the work.

Fire Chief Matt Payne told the board his department applied for and received a $3,800 grant from the Ohio EMS Grants program, which his department plans to use to purchase new EMS equipment. He said the department must first make the purchase and will then be reimbursed for the amount spent.

Additionally, Payne said the department has also applied for a $35,000 fire grant that, if awarded, will be used to purchase new fire hoses.

Payne, who assumed the role of township fire chief in October 2024, also announced that he plans to assume the role of director of the Medina County All Hazards Team later this month. The Medina County All Hazards Team is a specialized response team that provides countywide HAZMAT and technical rescue response to various emergencies and disasters. The team is composed of fire, EMS and law enforcement personnel from different agencies across the county, who are trained and equipped to handle complex and hazardous situations.

Payne will retain his position as township fire chief while overseeing the team, he said.

Medina County Board of Elections board member Melissa Augustine also addressed the board, noting that the state of Ohio plans to use grant dollars to increase poll workers and training before the Nov. 3 election.

Augustine said the Medina County Board of Elections is hoping to increase its 500 poll workers throughout the county by 15% and is also looking to assemble a team of reserve poll workers. Using the grant dollars, she said the county will be retraining all of its current poll workers on several matters, including photo ID procedures, polling location setup and closing, required signatures, de-escalation and conflict resolution, election integrity and security and proper polling place management.

Lastly, trustees discussed the list of questions the township’s Comprehensive Plan Committee has proposed for an upcoming community survey. The committee, which has been meeting for over a year now, is in the process of updating the township’s comprehensive plan, which was last fully updated in 2015.