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Board of County Commissioners - Department Budget Hearings - May 7, 14, and 21, 2024

Meeting Details: The Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) met at various times on May 7, 14, and 21, 2024 for the purpose of reviewing budget requests received from County Departments under the hiring authority of the BOCC.  These hearings were held at the County Administration Building, 12611 Ravenwood Drive, Room B303, Chardon, OH. BOCC meetings were in-person only, and there are no recordings for the public to view

Background: Hearing times were listed in advance. There were a total of 20 hearings. LWV Observers attended all of the hearings.  

Observer Comment: In the past, the BOCC Budget Hearings have been held in the fall. However, this year these hearings were moved to the spring so that the BOCC Budget Hearings would take place before the Budget Commission’s Budget Hearings, which will occur on August 19 and 20, 2024. 

Public Comment Policy: There was no public comment and this follows normal practice for all meetings conducted as “hearings.” 

Attendance: Present for most hearings were Commissioners James Dvorak and Timothy Lennon.  Also present were County Administrator Gerald Morgan, County Assistant Administrator Linda Burhenne, Budget and Finance Manager Adrian Gorton and Senior Financial Specialist Deborah Ashburn. It will be noted if one of the parties is not present or leaves early.

County Representatives: At each hearing, the Department Chair attended, and in some cases other department staff members were present as well.

More Information and Posted Minutes for BOCC: Available here

Observer Note: Last year the Commissioners approved 3% raises for all County employees for 2024. These were noted at various times.  There are also statutory increases for certain office holders which are a result of the new population 2022 census which lists Geauga population as 95,469.  Once the population is over 95,000, there are mandated increases.  See ORC 325.

Tuesday, May 7th

12:00 PM to 12:30 PM Department on Aging, Jessica Boalt

Present were Director Jessica Boalt and Fiscal & Budget Officer Duane Bidlack. 

Mr. Gorton commended the department for receiving $267,000 in new revenue, primarily from $221,000 in federal grants. Ms. Boalt reported:

• Federal grants for this year and next year will be over $220,000 through the Western Reserve Area Agency on Aging. The grants will be used to reimburse their programs and services. 

•  For 2024, the amended budget showed $355,000 in grants. The actual amount will be over $500,000. For 2025, they are anticipating about $576,000 from federal grants.
  

Mr. Gorton asked if the grants are tied to any particular use. Ms. Boalt said yes, they are tied to social services, the out-of-county medical transportation program, transportation for their adult day services, adult day service programs, and the Matter of Balance and diabetes self-management classes taught at their Senior Centers. Ms. Boalt said the grants also cover parts of driver salaries and the use of the vehicles.

Mr. Lennon asked if there are any grants for new vehicles. Ms. Boalt said they have just received two vehicles through grants. One is a long-awaited handicapped-accessible van. They are in the process of putting their current handicapped vehicle up for auction as they haven’t been able to get parts to repair it. The other new vehicle is a truck from Western Reserve Area Agency on Aging (WRAAA).  WRAAA paid $57,000 toward the total vehicle cost of over $60,000. The Department of Aging paid the balance. She noted the truck is being used for the Chore and Home Safety program for such jobs as hauling lumber. 

Mr. Lennon asked what impact the increased revenue from property tax increases has had on their budget. Mr. Bidlack said they are unsure about the impact as they are still waiting for the absolute adjusted numbers from the auditor. The dollar amounts in the 2025 budget are projections from the Auditor’s office.

A discussion followed about the reasons for the differences between the annual revenues in 2023, 2024 and 2025 and why the property tax revenue is not as high as might be expected. Mr. Morgan noted that Aging’s levy revenue will remain frozen until they go out for renewal. 

Additional reporting:

• Adult Day Service donations are expected to decrease significantly. Instead of donations, some of this revenue appears under “Other Revenue Adult Day Care,” which reflects projected contributions to the program cost by participants.  Costs include such items as salaries, materials, and food. Ms. Boalt explained that in order to get grant funding for this service, the department is required to enter into a cost share with their participants who are asked to pay a portion of costs based on their ability to pay. These contributions are part of the $10,000 projected in “Other Revenue Adult Day Care.”  She stated the families are supportive and do send in checks as a thank you. She pointed out that the agency can’t deny services because of refusal to pay.

• Under Expenses, they are asking for $1,800,000 which includes a 3% salary increase. Ms. Boalt noted they are undergoing some staff reorganization which will result in less staff.

• Under Equipment, they have budgeted $61,000. These monies are not allocated for a specific use. The department likes to keep funds in reserve to cover emergency expenses such as new commercial ovens or freezers. Given their programs, the department can’t afford to wait the two weeks to encumber funds from the county.  

Mr. Bidlack said a portion of the equipment funds is for computer replacement and that they are trying to get on a 5-year replacement schedule. There is a little extra in the budget for unexpected computer equipment expenses.

• Ms. Boalt said requests for proposals (RFPs) are going out for the Middlefield and Bainbridge Senior Centers Rentals. She is unsure what is happening with the Chardon Senior Center, but doesn’t expect any temporary moves before they go to their permanent location. She feels comfortable reducing the budget by $15,000.  They are ready to move forward once they get an agreement and secure an architect for the new center.

• Cost Allocation is estimated at $180,000. Ms. Boalt anticipates that they may need to adjust the amount some time next year.

Mr. Dvorak asked how many are on staff to go to someone’s house to change a lightbulb or install handrails or safety bars. Ms. Boalt said there is one staff member and a second full-time position is open but has been hard to fill. 

Mr. Gorton asked whether they were planning to put a levy on the ballot next fall or next spring. Ms. Boalt would prefer to put a levy on the ballot in the spring but the decision might be affected by what other issues are on the ballot. It will be a renewal levy as long as the department can keep getting additional grant funds.  

Mr. Lennon asked how budgeted income compares to projected revenue. Mr. Gorton acknowledged that they have budgeted a $220,000 shortfall of expenses over revenue. However, the department has a carryover of $2-3 million in the current fund, sufficient to cover that issue.

Mr. Lennon asked about the separate account set aside for new buildings. Ms. Boalt said there is $1,800,639.70 in the account, $600,00 to $800,000 from the sale of the old Chardon Senior Center on Ravenwood. An additional $700,000 is from the transfer of carryover funds. These monies will be used to buy and renovate the new Chardon Senior Center building.

Mr. Dvorak asked if carryover money could be used to finish the Chardon Senior Center building. 

Ms. Boalt said yes and she said they would do that “thoughtfully”. She also noted that they will need six months of operating costs if the levy doesn’t pass. 

Mr. Lennon asked why the $2-3 million carryover amount doesn’t appear in the budget.

Mr. Gorton said the carryover is a function between the years, so it wouldn’t be reflected on budget documents.

Mr. Lennon said the carryover should be on the budget since it is such a large part of it and needed to make budgeting decisions. Mr. Gorton has never put it in the budget before but will do so in the future. 

Mr. Lennon commended the department’s work. He said he still thinks the size of the carryover will need to be addressed and that the department needs to prove that they need it.

Ms. Boalt agreed and pointed out that her department is 86% levy funded. Their grants are contingent on providing certain services. If she doesn’t have the staff to provide the direct services to clients, they wouldn’t be eligible to receive $500,000 in grants. 

Mr. Lennon said he was not advocating for Aging to spend all the carryover down. He believes the department is doing a very good job and he is excited to see the Senior Center completed.

12:35 PM to 1:15 PM Job and Family Services (JFS) Craig Swenson

Present were Executive Director Craig Swenson, Assistant Director Paul Reiman, and Financial Administrator Alyssa Steinhoff

 

Mr. Swenson noted his budget is one of the more complicated ones that Commissioners must approve with over 90 funding streams all reporting on different annual federal and state requirements. He also said the budget is relatively consistent year to year. They receive a mandated share from the general fund as well as federal and state money. They are also supported by two key operating levies received through Children’s Services. 

New Youth Center - Mr. Swenson said JFS has made significant headway in the past six months. They have been through the publication process for design services. One architect responded and has been hired.

Observer Note: Job and Family Services plans to build a new 6,600-square-foot youth center on Aquilla Road in Geauga County. The department had been considering whether to improve the current youth center or move to a new one and repurpose the current building.

 

Mr. Swenson said the new center will allow them to expand the current population. It will have the sight lines and door alarms and certain attributes that the current facility on Ravenwood does not. They will keep beds available for only Geauga County preliminarily.  JFS is aware that the Commissioners and current Judge haven’t historically wanted to open their facilities to Lake or other counties. Because this new facility will be bigger with more attributes, it might be possible to open beds up to other counties. This approach could potentially bring in revenue.

The new facility will be open to children between the ages of 12 and 17 and have a capacity for 16: 7 boys and 7 girls and 2 respite beds. The respite beds will be in a separate part of the building in the administrative area. The center will be one story and have a common kitchen area, common recreational lounge area, and a classroom that can have multiple uses.

Mr. Swenson further discussed the following programs:

• Public Assistance - Caseloads have remained higher than projected. The state has made it frustratingly difficult post-pandemic to close some cases they’d like to, especially Medicaid cases, even those for which they receive returned mail. Pre-pandemic caseloads were 6,000-7,000 county Medicaid cases. Towards the end of the pandemic, they had over 10,000 Medicaid cases for the county.

• Children’s Services Incentive Funding - This program has been available for the past two years. Last year, they were also able to provide incentives to public assistance staff for meeting benchmarks, such as reaching a percentage of visits with children and families. He hopes to see this program continue.

• Child Support – They are meeting their benchmarks. JFS should have some staff retirements over the next 2-3 years. There are not a lot of openings as these jobs are very desirable.  Many staff have been with them a long time. 

• Work Force – Funds are slightly down but still relatively steady. Challenges, such as inflation, are still there. They are still planning to hold a summer youth program.

Levies - Mr. Swenson said that two levies are coming up for renewal. The earliest they could put their .5 mill levy on the ballot would be Fall 2024; the earliest the .7 mill levy could go on the ballot is Fall 2025. He will be coming to the Commissioners this summer for approval of this timetable.  He noted that the levies tend to be heavily supported; the last vote was 80% to 20% in favor.

 

Mr. Swenson noted that though the department currently has a large cash balance, that amount will soon be reduced by about $6 million (presumably for the new Youth Center?), leaving them with $2-3 million. He advises keeping this reserve size to be prepared for another potential crisis like the opioid epidemic.

 

The Commissioners expressed concern about the size of JFS cash balance, noting the Budget Commission doesn’t like to see departments carrying over 30-40% of their annual budget. Mr. Swenson noted that $2-3 million they are projecting is close to that formula. He also does not want to repeat the years they had to go out for a levy because they were only a few months away from having to ask the Commissioners for general fund money to keep out of the red. He further noted that this situation happened when costs were lower. Current per night residential costs are high, between $700 to $900.

Mr. Lennon stated that Geauga County has been fortunate not to have a budget deficit and avoid cuts. County residents have supported levies, but the government can’t take that support for granted. He acknowledged the difficult balance between high balances and having enough in reserve. Ms. Ashburn noted that her office has received a lot of complaints about the property tax increases and thought that there could be resident backlash against future levies and other taxes.

 

County Cost Allocation – Mr. Swenson and his Fiscal Administrator met with Mr. Morgan and Mr. Gorton to discuss the estimated rent allocation which is much higher than what they paid previously.  Current annual rent for their space in the new Geauga County Office Building is $335,000 versus $4,000 for space in their old building. Mr. Lennon noted that though this is a necessary line item in department budgets, he wondered if there was a way to phase in this new expense to reduce the burden on departments. Mr. Morgan noted that the state said they could discount or credit it in some way. Mr. Swenson thanked Mr. Gorton for arranging to give them credit for the sale of their old building.

 

Computer Services – JFS is on the state network for most of their computer systems and are billed quarterly for royalty licenses and actual service. They are on a 5-year replacement program; they received new equipment right after the pandemic. Mr. Reiman said their phone service also runs through their computers so that there are no desk phones.

 

Other updates. JFS has changed their staff structure at the Child Advocacy Center and Family First Council now that long-time employee Brad Welch has taken a new position. Previously, his time was divided among the Advocacy Center, Family First Council and Children’s Services. Mr. Welch will now be working solely with the Family First Council in a case manager-style role. The department is choosing not to fill Mr. Welch’s position as it was structured. Instead, they have hired a new person to work with the Family First Council and another person from within JFS to work with the Child Advocacy Center. JFS will not fill the position of family representative at the Child Advocacy Center. 

 

Caseloads – The number of caseloads has come down since the pandemic though their complexity remains high. JFS opened cases in the 600s at the height of the opioid epidemic; they opened  just under 400 cases in 2023. JFS is being vigilant for a spike since the decrease in caseloads was so dramatic. 

 

New contracts – To upgrade their website, JFS has signed a new contract with Xerxes, the company that completely overhauled the JFS website 5-6 years ago. 

They are also working with Linear Creative, a social media/advertising company, on campaigns on Facebook and other social media that advocate for social service positions and foster parent recruitment. Foster care recruitment has been very successful: the department currently has the largest training class of foster parents that they’ve ever had. JFS has also hired Wonderlic to find and recruit employees. Wonderlic uses on-line tests to determine applicant aptitude.  This approach has helped JFS move away from paper tests. The ability to screen candidates before they come in has been cost effective.

Vehicles – The department currently has 12-15 vehicles and is planning to replace 1 next year. The county prosecutor helped JFS obtain one vehicle through ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act). Mr. Lennon thinks the county should explore using Enterprise Rental Car to provide their vehicles, noting that Trumbull County and others are using them. Enterprise has approached Geauga County about their services and Mr. Lennon thinks it is worth investigating.

1:41 PM to 2:15 PM Airport Authority Richard Blamer

Present were Airport Manager Richard Blamer, Director, VP of Board Greg Gyllstrom, and Board Member Chris Schloss

 

Improvements - Mr. Blamer discussed their plan to build a parallel taxiway, a major improvement that will increase airport capacity. Planes now must back taxi on the runway which is not ideal. Mr. Blamer noted that the cost of materials has risen significantly. They are hoping once they go out to bid, the projected costs will be less. The runway has not been funded yet because the FAA is behind their normal schedule. A decision is expected any day. Grants should be awarded by the end of their fiscal year, Sept. 30. Construction is expected to finish next year, but could extend into 2026.

 

T - hangar Project – The new T hangar project is moving along. The initial cost estimate of $1.2 million for the hangar has increased substantially. The FAA has allocated $448,000 toward it and the airport is asking the county to fund the balance. Mr. Gorton expressed surprise at the cost as the last T hangar loan from the county was $750,000.  Mr. Blamer said the final total cost on that project was $866,000. Mr. Gyllstrom said the $1.2 million includes the cost of repairing the taxiway between the two T hangars. The hangar is smaller than the other hangars, accommodating 8 instead of 10 planes. However, the hangar can house planes with larger wingspans. Once the improvements are completed, the airport will look at canceling hangar rental leases in order to charge more. All of the spaces in the new T hangar were reserved with a waiting list of 25. Mr. Blamer noted the airport is in high demand.

 

Repairs - Roofs on their two oldest hangars, #4 & # 5, need $200,000 in repairs. The airport has received a few estimates. The hangar doors were also damaged in the recent storm but have been fixed.

 

Mr. Lennon asked about the budget for the Airport Authority.  Mr. Gyllstrom said the airport’s financial system is outside the county’s budget. They have been providing the Commissioners their 10-year capital improvement plan. He also noted that every year the airport plans to run in the black. Their revenue sources are hangar rentals and fuel sales. Beyond that, they use the FAA, ODOT and the county to fund capital projects.  Mr. Gyllstrom noted that such breakeven success is unusual for small Ohio airports. They pay close attention to fuel and rental charges at competitors and raise rents to keep up with inflation.  

 

Mr. Gyllstrom stated the airport has a structured 1.5%, 20-year loan with the county for the T hangar and are in their second year of pay back.  The monthly loan payment is $3,619.00.

 

Mr. Lennon said that before awarding a new loan, he would like to see how the current projects are performing and perhaps see a business plan. Mr. Blamer provided the following:

 

Annual budget: approximately $300,000.

Revenue:

Hangar rental – $147,500; 

AirMed (critical care air transport service) - $55,086

Fuel - $75,000. (this amount is lower than other years because of airport closure due to construction projects.)

Carryover - about $29,000.

 

The airport also has $140,000 in combined accounts for unexpected maintenance expenses.

 

Expenses:

Loan payment - $42,000

Fuel- $64,000

Repairs & Maintenance - $40,000 

Utilities - $29,000 

Supplies - $3,000 

Grass cutting - $12,000

Snow plowing - $10,000

Garbage -$2,500

Insurance - $8,000 (County covers some of the health insurance as well) 

 

Future plans -

UH AirMed - The airport is in discussions with University Hospitals who want to take over the medical air transport lease. UH is looking for a longer term and reduced rate. The Airport Authority considers UH AirMed a premium account and a big benefit to the county. The commissioners will be asked to review the new lease before it is final. 

 

New fuel type - They are adding a new fuel type, “low gas”, which is used in some older aircraft with low compression engines. They expect this addition will attract more flyers.

 

Land Acquisition – The airport has acquired adjacent land to the east of the airport with an eye toward expansion. They would like to keep purchasing land in order to build more hangars and expand the 4,000 foot runway. A longer runway would open the airport to additional business traffic.

 

Both commissioners commended the Airport Authority for their success at being self-sufficient, noting that since Mr. Blamer came on board, there have been “...a lot of positive things happening.”

 

2:20 PM to 2:51 PM Engineer Joe Cattell 

Present were Director Joe Cattell, Assistant Director Andrew Haupt, and Administrator Katie Taylor

 

Projects - Mr. Cattell said they have had some aggressive projects over the past few years, with almost $11 million in improvements. They have received federal money to change the current Y-intersection of Bainbridge Road and Washington Street into a much safer T-intersection. Resurfacing all of Butternut Road is also planned. 

 

Equipment – Mr. Cattell says they have purchased a lot of their equipment from ODOT, getting up to 40% to 60% savings from their state bids. ODOT has changed their purchase agreement to require a resolution from Commissioners. Engineering has asked ODOT if the department can use a blanket resolution or will need one for each purchase. They are talking to the County Prosecutor to come up with a solution.

 

Last year’s Freightliner cabin chassis purchase is still in limbo because of the purchase agreement change. They usually buy two a year at a cost of $11,000 each. They purchase the chassis and then install the extras like the hydraulics and spreaders. Overall, the department has the equipment it needs.

 

Mr. Cattell did note that they are becoming concerned about the increasing cost of Gradall Excavators. The price has more than doubled in ten years, from $230,000 to almost $486,000. Mr. Cattell said that Gradall’s largest customer is the government which provides no incentive to keep prices down. The department is looking at alternatives to purchasing a Gradall in 2026 as currently planned.  

 

Staffing – The department currently has 45 employees, significantly down from their regular operating number of 55. The Tax Map division has gone from 4 to 2 ½ staff.

Assistant Director Andy Haupt has donated his time filling in at Tax Map, however, he won’t be able to continue if he takes over for Mr. Cattell as director. Mr. Cattell would like to increase the Tax Map budget from $193, 585 to $275,000 to hire another person. Later in the meeting, Mr. Gorton asked Mr. Cattell for a revised personnel sheet that he will incorporate into the budget. The request can then be discussed and approved by the Budget Commission. 

 

New Developments - Mr. Cattell said work at new developments is picking up, creating a big strain on the department. The large development at Geauga Lake is especially burdensome. The builders are constantly changing lot splits and consolidations, each requiring review by Tax Map staff.

 

Revenue Spikes - Mr. Lennon inquired about the jump in department revenue in 2022, which reached almost $15 million. Mr. Cattell said these anomalies result from infusions of federal money and/or money from Ohio Public Works.  The department works hard at lobbying the state for funds, especially since NOACA (Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency) hasn’t given them anything. He noted that because these funds aren’t released until July 1, most Engineers offices wait to program projects until the next year. His office is aggressive in this regard, ready to go out for bid in advance of the money’s release. In this way, projects are completed in a timely fashion and inflationary costs are reduced.

Part of the revenue spike in 2022 was $2.2 million in federal funding for specific Geauga County bridges repair. Robinson Road, Pettibone and Bundysburg Bridges were all repaired using this money.

Another source of the increase was the realization of monies from the new gas tax instituted by the legislature and governor. 

 

Mr. Lennon asked what the carryover is for the department. Mr. Cattell said they try to carry over one month of costs which is approximately $800,000. The current budget is about $12 million, not including federal and state funds. He said it’s important when budgeting to plan for the contingency that any job funded with federal money can legally go 20% over projections.

 

Mr. Dvorak asked when they would know the new price for road salt. Mr. Cattell said they will probably hear in July. Because of the recent mild winters, the department is in good shape for salt, with 8,000 tons on hand.

 

Mr. Lennon asked about their levy schedule. Mr. Cattell said they have 3 years left in their 5-year cycle. He expects they will put the levy on the ballot a year early and that, if he were in charge, he’d ask for a renewal. 

 

Mr. Lennon complimented Mr. Cattell and his department for doing a great job and expressed confidence that Mr. Haupt would continue the high standards.  He noted that “the crews seem to be working hard…are taking safety precautions, and they look like they’re proud of their jobs.”

 

Observer Note: Geauga County Engineer Mr. Cattell announced August, 2023 that he will not seek a fourth term as Geauga County Engineer after three decades with the Geauga County Engineer's office, stepping down when his term ends this January. He is lending his full support to his Assistant Director Andy Haupt.

Observer Note: Commissioner Lennon did not attend the last two budget meetings. Only Commissioner Dvorak was in attendance.

3:06 PM to 3:26 PM Common Pleas/Court Technology  Judge Carolyn Paschke (Judge David Ondrey did not attend)

Present were Judge Carolyn Paschke, Legal Administrator David Lubecky, IT Director Velta Miosio, HR Fiscal Officer & Staff Attorney Randy Taylor, and Court IT Officer Tom Huff

 

Judge Paschke opened her remarks by stating that “we believe, due to the separation of powers, that we are not required to be here and have our budget approved and that we can journalize our budget if we chose to do that. However, we are here voluntarily and appreciate your input and appreciate the spirit of cooperation between our offices and want to continue that.”

 

Judge Paschke noted that Judge Ondrey is retiring at the end of the year as are his bailiff and court reporter. These latter two retirements will mean buyouts for vacation and sick time. The court is hoping one or both will stay on for a while to help train new staff. In addition, Judge Ondrey’s administrative assistant has taken another position. The court is waiting to learn what the new judge wants before moving forward. The Judge noted that this type of wholesale transfer in the courthouse hasn’t happened in 20 years.

 

Judge Paschke said in addition to all the retirements already mentioned, another employee has announced they intend to retire in 2025.  She noted that  the staff demographic is older and the court needs to plan for more regular retirements going forward. She joked that at age 54, she’s one of the young ones at the court.

 

Staffing – The court has had state and federal grants for their drug court. The federal grant was for 4 years but was extended because of the Covid pandemic. Those funds must be used by October, 2025. The money pays the salary of the probation officer, Greg Potts, who supervises the people in the drug court using the same funds. His salary is now in the budget while they wait to hear about opiate funding and a grant and have applied for the opiate funds through SAMHSA, (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services), the federal mental health department and the Department of Justice. 

 

The court has also budgeted $20,000 for a part-time position at their Help Desk. They have seen a big increase in the number of people representing themselves in mostly civil cases in court. Some other counties and probate juvenile courts have added a Help Desk person to assist self-representing people with questions and filling out forms as they come to court. Right now, litigants are seeking help from staff who are restricted from giving legal advice. The Help Desk will keep staff from being put in the awkward position of telling people they can’t answer their questions.

 

Mr. Gorton noted that last year they consolidated the old probation funds into a single, new community corrections fund. Judge Paschke thanked Mr. Lubecky for getting the consolidation organized.

 

Mr. Lubecky said their fiscal person is retiring at the end of 2025. They have asked to hire a new person before the current person leaves. The court also needs to replace 3 copiers.

 

Witness Fees - Judge Paschke said the court needs to increase witness fees. They have had a few cases that have required interpreters which has caused them to go over budget. Psychological evaluations have increasingly been needed, too. In addition, their two current evaluators are semi-retired and their replacements have higher fees.

 

IT Expenses - There was additional discussion of IT expenses related to needs for the new addition and the separation of the juvenile and probate courts. They are trying to find ways to reduce costs by renegotiating contracts and their CMS (content management system). Ms. Miosio also noted that she is getting a lot of good input and cooperation within the county about their IT needs.

 

Judge Paschke expressed the judges’ thanks to the commissioners for allowing their input on the new building. The changes will address a lot of their security concerns and allow them to work more efficiently.

 

There was a brief discussion about the challenges of working in a building under construction, including parking issues for merchants and court employees.

Mr. Morgan thanked the court representatives, especially Mr. Taylor, for their help and cooperation during construction.

 

Observer Note: The Geauga County Court is undergoing a $15 million remodel and expansion. Groundbreaking was December, 2023 for a three-story, nearly 22,000 square foot space.

3:55 PM to 4:35 PM Water Resources Nick Gorris

Present were Director Nick Gorris and Fiscal & Personnel Specialist Kathleen Miller

 

Mr. Gorris said his department is currently at 33% of where they should be: sewer revenue is at about 35% and water revenue is at 40%. Expenses are higher, but the increase was expected. He anticipates revenue will plateau in the next few years as the number of new builds stabilizes.

 

Staffing – They added a chief operator to McFarland Creek WasteWater Treatment Plant in 2024. An Assistant Water Supervisor was hired in anticipation of the Water Supervisor’s retirement.

In 2024, the budget showed 39 employees on the sewer side with 5 additional positions open. 

On the water side, they are hoping to add another maintenance worker and a design engineer. With the water systems growing and becoming more complex, they have decided an engineer is needed for that work. Mr. Gorris is looking for someone to replace Water Supervisor Brian Loza when he decides to retire. They hope to find someone who would like to work his way from a maintenance position to management.

In 2025, they abolished the network administrator and network tech positions since they no longer have their own network. Mr. Gorris is looking to add a 38th sewer person, an Operational Technician to run their technology as they still have a lot of operational technology that’s not on the county network. The department is still developing the job description and debating if the need is full- or part-time. They are considering using one of their electricians to do this work since a lot of the data knowledge overlaps. 

Other openings for 2025 are: assistant sanitary engineer, engineering tech, a fiscal specialist, equipment operator and a night shift maintenance worker. They will hire internally for one engineering tech and will keep looking for a second. He also is excited to have a strong candidate for night shift maintenance worker. 

 

Mr. Dvorak asked if there was anyone in the water department who had the licensure required to be supervisor. Mr. Gorris said Brian Cain, the Assistant Water Supervisor, will be able to step in immediately when Mr. Loza retires.

 

Equipment - They have replaced 2 route trucks and one line maintenance truck. The department purchased a handheld GPS system and has budgeted $10,000 to buy another this year. The system they found, Geode, cost a quarter of the first system they purchased and is more accurate. The Geode pairs with a cell phone so that it doesn’t become obsolete.

 

Equipment requests for 2025 include replacing three trucks for sewer, all 2015 models. Costs reflect outfitting the new trucks with truck caps and tools on it. They are eliminating snow plows on the routes since the recent winters have been so mild. They plan to add plows to the trucks as needed. 

 

They are adding two new generators, one at the Hawksmore and one at Haskins sewer plants. This leaves under ten sites without onsite generators. The department also has two trailers with portable generators that can be pulled to any plant.

 

Water Resources also needs a new GapVax truck. Unfortunately, their GapVax is out of warranty and the local rep has lost the rights to service it. Any repairs require the department to take the truck to the other side of Pennsylvania. They hope to purchase a Vactor, a different brand of vacuum truck, in 2026.

Mr. Gorris said they need a lot of replacements and purchases on the water side:

• Generators at Knowls Booster Station, Country Lane Station and Services Center. He noted that boosters are critical to the Bainbridge water supply since it comes from Cleveland, a long distance;

• A mobile reading system for water meter reading. As they are replaced, meters are becoming cell units which enables remote readings by phone. About 10% of meters have cell units. The cell units can pick up both Verizon and ATT. They have had a few hiccups with the signal, but nothing serious.

Mr. Gorton asked how the integration has been with the New World Technologies, the meter reading interface.  Mr. Gorris said they had made great strides in meter reading and importing the data. They have just over 960 water accounts. The first time he downloaded the information, he had 150 misreads. Now it’s down to an average of 70 misreads, with fewer each period.

 

The department has made a lot of adjustments in how they bill based on the new data. They can more easily see both underbilling and overbilling. For overbilling, the department makes it right either by reimbursement or account credit. The new system can also identify potential water use problems on an account by showing large changes in use. They can check to see who the top ten users are. If a customer’s usage gets into the top ten, the water department can alert that customer to a possible leak or running water. If asked, the customer department will consider forgiving the expense of the excess use and/or work out a payment plan.

 

Another large expense this year is improving the bulk water fill station at McFarland Water Treatment Plant. The department has eliminated the bulk water fill at the service plant on Ravenwood, now allowing them in Bainbridge and McFarland. At McFarland, the water trucks can drive directly down to the plant and use a debit card system to pay for the water. This change will benefit the low-lying McFarland because the plant doesn’t currently use a lot of water. With the trucks frequently hauling the water away, more water will be drawn through the plant, helping the entire system.  The money derived from the bulk fill station will be put toward a driveway and other improvements at McFarland.

 

Sewer Improvement Projects –

• McFarland clarifiers and new headworks. At $30 million, this projected expense is the department’s biggest this year. They are ready to go out to bid but are waiting for the order allocating $2.7 million for the project to be signed.

• Driveway improvements at the Valley View Waste Treatment Plant. The drive is ½ mile long and full of potholes. The plan is to regrade and perhaps do a double chip.

• Add some EQ tanks at the Baker Plant 

• Replace roof for Merritt Road Operation Center at a projected cost of $1,000,000. Some of the funds will be used to modify their locker room and possibly add on to the current training room which is currently too small to accommodate meetings with the entire staff.

Services Center Upgrades 

Water well additions, including line connectors. Well #2 might have to be redrilled.

 

Water Resources has considered doing a well field study. The county needs to reserve 1-3 undeveloped land tracts to the east to ensure the entirety of the water system.  

 

Growth and Revenue Streams – Mr. Gorris noted that Geauga County is booming with new builds. Canyon Lakes’ last phase is expected to be the end of large usage increases, causing a plateau in revenue. Mr. Morgan agreed that there isn’t much vacant land left in their water or sewer systems. Mr. Gorris said developments currently on wells, such as Laurel Springs, Tanglewood and Lake Lucerne, could boost department  revenue if they switched from their well to the County system. He noted that the Bainbridge Fire Department has urged Laurel Springs to switch because their wells don’t provide enough water pressure to make their hydrants functional.

 

Mr. Dvorak asked how Bainbridge water customers pay their bill, given that the water comes from Cleveland. Mr. Gorris said all payments are through Geauga Water Resources. Geauga does line maintenance and the meter reads.

Tuesday, May 14th

All Commissioners and BOCC staff were present.

12:00 PM to 12:30 PM Board of Elections Michelle Lane

As noted, all Commissioners and BOCC Staff were present. Also present were Board of Elections (BOE) Director Michele Lane, BOE Deputy Director Nora McGinnis, and BOE Board Member Joan Windnagel.

The BOE Budget Hearing began at 12:02 pm.

Mr. Gorton noted that BOE expenses have been relatively consistent. He said that BOE has an additional $89,000 in their budget request for equipment, including a vehicle, a rolling ladder, and a mail extractor machine. Mr. Lennon asked if the mail extractor would reduce manpower hours, and BOE staff responded that it would drastically reduce manpower hours as well as human error and that it would cost $47,000. Mr. Lennon asked how much BOE is requesting for a vehicle, and Mr. Gorton told him that they would like $40,000 to get a 2024 Toyota Sienna hybrid minivan. Mr. Lennon asked if it would be for moving equipment around, and BOE staff responded that it would mostly be used for twice daily post office runs during election seasons. Mr. Spidalieri asked if the minivan would just sit outside aside from usage during election seasons. BOE staff replied that with two or three elections a year, there isn’t a lot of downtime, but BOE said they would be glad to share the vehicle with other County entities that could use it when BOE does not have need of it. Mr. Spidalieri and Mr. Dvorak expressed concern about potential shortcomings of hybrid vehicles and urged the BOE to research them further. Mr. Morgan suggested getting a rental vehicle during election cycles, which he thought might be more cost effective. Ms. Windnagel asked if the County’s liability insurance would cover a rental vehicle, and Mr. Morgan said that it should.    

Ms. Burhenne asked about a BOE revenue account with $778,000 that has the restriction that it can only be used on equipment. She asked if it can be used to pay for the just-discussed $89,000 in equipment BOE is requesting. BOE staff responded that those funds are restricted for use on voting equipment only so it cannot be used on those expenses. Ms. Windnagel said that BOE spent roughly $1.2 million on the County’s current voting equipment about three years ago. Mr. Gorton pointed out that the State paid for a large (unspecified) percentage of that amount, but Ms. Lane noted that it is uncertain if this support from the State would be there for future voting equipment expenses. Mr. Lennon wondered if BOE was more or less out of things to spend the voting equipment funds on, but BOE staff indicated that changing technology may result in new voting equipment being needed in the future. Mr. Gorton noted that most of BOE’s funding is within the County’s general fund, with the voting equipment fund being BOE’s only major fund. 

Next personnel matters were discussed. Mr. Lennon said there weren’t many changes other than about $15,000 in raises. BOE staff noted that personnel come in and work more during election season compared to non-election times and specified that most employees work less than 30 hours a week and do not get healthcare/hospitalization insurance through the BOE.  

Issues regarding BOE’s space in the County Office Building were considered. The counter is 34” high in the County Office Building BOE space, which Ms. Lane said is considered a safety issue by the BOE Board because they feel the counter is low enough that it could potentially be breached. It was noted that the counter is 43” high in the current BOE location on Center Street. It was determined that the 34” height was used to make the counter accessible to individuals using wheelchairs, but the BOE would prefer most of the counter to be taller, with areas on each end of the counter at the lower height for accessibility. Ms. Burhenne expressed concern that raising most of the counter to 43” while leaving the ends at 34” would still allow someone with bad intentions to step over the counter using one the the ends. Mr. Lennon noted that there has been a lot of back and forth about various changes for the new BOE space, and he also said that each time the County goes to the architectural design group regarding potential changes “it costs tens and tens of thousands” for them to create a drawing of the change, and then they have to pay to have the change made on top of that. Mr. Lennon estimated that the total cost of all of the changes was “in the millions of dollars.” Ms. Lane expressed the opinion that the County and the BOE are getting “very close” to agreeing about the BOE space. Ms. Windnagel pointed out that they still don’t have a security agreement in place for the BOE space because the Prosecutor's Office and the original company selected could not agree on contract terms. She said that BOE is hoping things go more smoothly with another security vendor. Observer Note: During the Maintenance Projects Budget Hearing on May 21 (available below), it was noted that a security agreement is now in place between BOE and another security vendor. Ms. Windnagel also said that the bathroom stalls in the BOE portion of the County Office Building were not made wide enough to accommodate a wheelchair. Ms. Burhenne said that the architect has just crafted a way to reconfigure things to fix that problem. Mr. Lennon concluded the discussion saying that “... we all need to kinda put our heads together…. We still need to be realistic that it costs, everytime you pick up the phone, it’s costing us tens of thousands of dollars realistically…. Whatever we can do to work together to solve these issues and still keep the taxpayer in mind when we’re doing it, that’d be great.”

The BOE Budget Hearing concluded at 12:34 pm.

12:35 PM to 1:35 PM Sheriff Scott Hildenbrand

All Commissioners and BOCC Staff were present. Also present were Sheriff Scott Hildenbrand and Chief Deputy Tom Rowan.

The Sheriff’s Budget Hearing began at 12:35 pm.

Sheriff Hildenbrand began by noting that it was “difficult” doing the budget hearing this early in the year and that he has already had personnel changes since submitting his budget request. However, he pledged that “we’re going to do the best we can.” Mr. Gorton observed that there was a large increase in personnel services of over $1.1 million from 2022 to 2023. Chief Deputy Rowan said that this was mostly due to retirements in that timespan, which he estimated ranged from 6-8 individuals. Mr. Lennon asked if the retirement number would decrease in 2024. Chief Deputy Rowan said that there have been two retirements so far this year and he was uncertain how many more there might be, as there are approximately 20 people who could retire at any time. Mr. Lennon pointed out that the Sheriff’s Office’s budget has increased from about $14 million in 2018 to about $17 million in 2023 and said most of this increase is due to salary costs. Mr. Gorton asked about the overall Sheriff’s Office employment level, and Chief Deputy Rowan said the number of deputies has gone up due to adding 1.5 deputies at the County Office Building and another one will be needed at the Courthouse once the expansion is completed. He also noted that they currently are down by one corrections officer and two dispatchers. Mr. Dvorak asked how much time is left on the deputies’ union contract, and Chief Deputy Rowan replied that the current contract goes through the end of 2025.

Mr. Gorton stated that prisoner housing revenue is making a rebound, as it has already nearly taken in its anticipated revenue for the entire year. Sheriff Hildenbrand agreed that they are doing very well in that area. Chief Deputy Rowan said that they have increased their price for ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) housing from $70 to $100 dollars per person and estimated that they have 50-60 detainees on any given day. 

Mr. Lennon inquired about any equipment needs outside of the Sheriff’s usual requests. Chief Deputy Rowan responded that they are looking to get new firearms because the current ones are over 10 years old. Mr. Gorton clarified that the Sheriff’s $264,000 total equipment request consisted of uniforms, vests, computers, cameras, guns and ammunition. Sheriff Hildenbrand noted that the trade-in the department will get for the old guns is not factored into the request and also said they are requesting some ballistic shields and taser gloves. Mr. Lennon stated that the Sheriff is a fellow elected official and his view about the Sheriff’s budget is: “Here’s the number, and within that, you can do what you want with it.” He further noted that the Sheriff’s Office has done a good job in the past with its finances and has kept expenses within a predictable range.    

There was a discussion about the recent killing of a Euclid police officer and if there was any equipment the Sheriff’s department could use to prevent something like that occurring in Geauga County. The Sheriff and Chief Deputy agreed that sadly no equipment could have prevented that death because it was an ambush attack. However, Chief Deputy Rowan did note that body armor costs are rising and are now about $950 for a set on average but deputies are only reimbursed for up to $750 of body armor expenses.

Mr. Lennon asked if union contracts are going to continue to go up each year by a percentage indefinitely. Sheriff Hildenbrand responded that this is influenced by how the economy is doing and said that “a 0% raise (is) probably not going to happen.” He indicated that it will probably keep going up, but they will try to keep the increases as low as they can. Mr. Lennon asked what would happen if the increases got to the point that the County could not afford them. Chief Deputy Rowan answered that the County’s financials are available to the union during the negotiation process and they are also available to any fact finder or arbitrator, which would presumably prevent that problem. The Sheriff noted that the deputies are not allowed to go on strike. He also said Sheriff’s Office salaries are at neither the top or the bottom of the pack, and Chief Deputy Rowan noted that Geauga’s location is attractive as a good place for families.   

Other budget items were discussed. Mr. Gorton said that the Sheriff’s Department is requesting six new Tahoe vehicles. He also noted that there was a $102,000 requested increase for 911, a $39,000 requested increase for 800 megahertz. communications, and a requested $95,000 increase for departmental improvements. The main departmental improvement is replacing the battery backup; Chief Deputy Rowan said that the current battery backup isn’t working well and resulted in about 30 minutes at the Sheriff’s Office with no power until the generator kicked on during a recent power outage. Mr. Dvorak asked if the doors at the Sheriff’s Office have been replaced yet and was told they have not been. Mr. Morgan said the doors have been ordered but there is a supply issue.  Observer Note: During the Maintenance Projects Budget Hearing on May 21 (available below), it was stated that the doors are now in and will be installed soon.

Mr. Lennon asked what the projected overall 2024 Sheriff’s Office budget was. Mr. Gorton said the adopted budget was $17 million in total, but it likely includes funds (amount not specified) that will be unspent and therefore returned back to the County general fund. Mr. Lennon asked how budgeting works for the Sheriff’s Department. Mr. Gorton explained that the budget is based on previous years’ spending, with the Sheriff’s general fund spending as follows for the last few years: $11,602,000 for 2021, $12,262,000 for 2022, and $13,517,000 for 2023. He specified that the Sheriff’s adopted general fund spending for 2024 was $14,200,000 for 2024 and has since been amended to $15,900,000. Mr. Gorton said the amounts have “... been steadily ticking up, (but) no big jumps at least in the general fund.” Sheriff Hildenbrand noted that some of the increases are due to projects such as the Sheriff’s website and flock cameras. Chief Deputy Rowan said software expenses like Microsoft 365 have increased as well, with the last Microsoft bill being about $40,000 for the year. Mr. Spidalieri asked how much the website costs a year, and Sheriff Hildenbrand said that they are projecting $10,000 for 2025. Mr. Lennon noted that “Some of these things are out of your control now with the cost of doing business going up but I think we all need to - not just the Sheriff’s Department - just be mindful that things have jumped pretty considerably here. You take this one tree and add it to the forest and you know we got about a 10% increase here and then parlay that across all the other departments. You know, things are going up here, so I think we just need to be mindful.” Mr. Gorton pointed out this could become a real concern if the sales tax revenue were to plateau or decrease while expenses continue to rise.

Chief Deputy Rowan reiterated the difficulty with having the Budget Hearing this early in the year, as they may yet receive bills that were unanticipated in this budget. Ms. Burhenne said that the hearings were made earlier to accommodate the Budget Commission. Mr. Lennon said that there were “pros and cons” to having the County Commissioners’ Budget Hearings earlier in the year. Observer Note: The County Commissioners’ Budget Hearings were moved earlier in the year so that they would be complete before the Budget Commissioners’ Budget Hearings that occur in August each year.

The Sheriff’s Budget Hearing concluded at 1:07 pm.

1:40 PM to 2:10 PM Building Dan Spada

All Commissioners and BOCC Staff were present. Also present were Building Department Director Dan Spada and Permit Supervisor Doreen Eppich.

The Building Department’s Budget Hearing began at 1:40 pm.

Mr. Spidalieri asked if the Building Department has a lot of inspections taking place. Mr. Spada said that this was the case, with Ms. Eppich specifying that there were 27 inspections scheduled for that day and 32 that occurred the day before.

Mr. Spada said that the majority of the Building Department’s budget is for salaries. He stated that they are trying to replace an assistant building official who recently left for another position and hire an additional inspector as well. Mr. Spada noted that they were “...kinda handcuffed with salary ranges still” and said that wage increases account for most of the Building Department’s budgetary increases. Mr. Spada also asked for additional training funds for anticipated new staff members. He said that the rest of the Building Department’s budget consisted of supplies like paper and inspection stickers and bills for cell phones and fuel. 

Mr. Spada said that the department’s biggest expense is contractual services, which are plant inspectors. He noted that increased expenses in this area also mean increased permit revenue. He stated that the Building Department reviewed permit fees every three years, and this year is one of those years for fee adjustments, which he hopes to do in July. He estimated only small tweaks to residential building fees and more room to move up in commercial building fees. Mr. Lennon cautioned against raising fees just because it can be done if it’s not really needed. Mr. Spada agreed with this sentiment and said at times fees have even been lowered, as deck fees were during the last fee adjustment. He said that they try to find a balance so that fees cover department expenses but are still low enough that people come to the department for permits when needed. He said, “We want you to come to us. We have such a big area. We don’t have the staff to be out there sort of being proactive, so we need you to come to us. And we don’t want to scare them away with permit costs.” 

Mr. Lennon asked if there were any equipment requests. Mr. Spada responded that they will need a laptop, iPad, cell phone and hotspot if they get the additional inspector and that this hire may result in additional fuel expenses as well, though they already have a vehicle available for this position. Mr. Gorton said that the department’s budget increase was about $130,000, with most of this reflecting the anticipated hiring of a new inspector. 

Mr. Spada mentioned several areas with a great deal of new home construction, including Canyon Lakes in Bainbridge, a Ryan Homes development in Middlefield, and another development in Chardon. He also said foundations are being poured in the Geauga Lake area apartments and condos based on a verbal agreement with the Building Department. This is because addresses are still being worked out in that area, so permits haven’t been able to be issued yet. Mr. Spada said there are many additions, pools, and accessory buildings being built on existing residential home sites and many additions and storage buildings are going up in the commercial sector as well.   

Mr. Gorton asked how the permit system was working. Mr. Spada said it works for what it needs to do and noted that they have shifted from paper-based to digital-based so all reviews occur on a laptop or iPad. 

Mr. Spada noted that being understaffed has taken a toll on the department and he is concerned about burnout. He said that Mr. Morgan did interview an interested candidate very recently for the assistant building official position and there may be a promising inspector candidate on the horizon. Mr. Lennon asked about the required credentials for an inspector, and Mr. Spada said multiple certifications were required, including a minimum of an electrical safety inspector certification, a commercial building inspector certification, and a residential building official certification. Mr. Lennon asked how the County Commissioners can help the Building Department advertise and look for people to hire. Mr. Spada said that the Building Officials Conference of Northeast Ohio, which is a part of the Building Officials Organization, is the place to get good candidates. He stated that they have already shared the Geauga County Building Department job openings with this organization. Ms. Burhenne said that the State of Ohio has more stringent requirements for inspectors than other states, which makes it harder to get people to come here for inspector jobs and also results in higher salary requirements for those that do come to Ohio. She said it was “weird” that Ohio pays more for inspectors but has lower permit fees than other states. Mr. Spada said the inspector job was once a good position for an injured tradesman, but now it’s getting so technical that it’s becoming a first-line career with many requirements to meet. He voiced concern that “We’ve sort of tapped out our resources for local guys” to hire into the Building Department, and salary issues have made it challenging to entice someone to move to the area.  

The Building Department’s Budget Hearing concluded at 2:01 pm.

2:15 PM to 2:45 PM Community and Economic Development Gina Hofstetter 

All Commissioners and BOCC Staff were present. Also present was Community and Economic Development Director Gina Hofstetter.

The Community and Economic Development (CED) Department’s Budget Hearing began at 2:15 pm.

Ms. Hofstetter thanked the Commissioners for a merit raise that she received in March. She noted that CED has numerous applications out for funding they are waiting to hear back about. Mr. Dvorak said that he has heard from Ohio Senate contacts that they are waiting to hand out development dollars because recreational marijuana tax money may pay for some development projects.

Ms. Hofstetter said that the local revolving loan fund has been challenging. She said she has been taking opportunities to counsel small business owners, but she said “The lending is just not there yet, it’s not strong.”
Ms. Hofstetter said the program seems to be “obviously dwindling down” and many people paid off their revolving loans with COVID funds. She said the current total outstanding loan amount is about $2 million across the nine loans CED is managing, all of which are in good standing. 

Ms. Hofstetter said that tourism is “near and dear” to her due to her 35 year background in hotels. She opined that Geauga is in a “...build it, and they will come situation” and said she “would love to play absolutely more of a role in that arena.”

Ms. Hofstetter talked about what happens when a business wants to come to the County and is looking for shovel-ready property. She said this is a marketing matter and it’s important for the County “...to put our best effort forward” but she hasn’t had as much time as she would like to devote to creating resources for this. She noted that there are existing options out there to help with this, but they are costly. Ms. Hofstetter gave the Commissioners a handout with information regarding a tool that could be embedded in the CED website to enable business people to find Geagua properties to match their specific needs. The cost for this program would be about $22,000 which is not built into the CED budget submission. She hypothesized that the program could be paid for collaboratively by townships and municipalities each chipping in some of the amount, as these entities would benefit from having additional businesses brought to their communities. Mr. Dvorak expressed the opinion that Geauga needs a stronger online presence aimed at attracting businesses to the area. Mr. Lennon asked about how many inquiries CED gets about businesses moving to the County. Ms. Hofstetter said it was “an average amount” and noted that sometimes it is difficult to come up with properties to meet a given business’ needs on the fly, which is why the previously discussed tool would be useful. She added that this tool would utilize real-time data as well.       

Mr. Gorton noted that the CED budget has decreased by roughly $60,000, primarily because loans are dropping off. Ms. Hofstetter said her department’s expenses have gone down because they have elected to no longer employ an outside contractor for assistance with training and program guidance, and she said that this would save about $48,500 a year.

Mr. Lennon asked if CED is a part of getting the Geauga CIC (Community Investment Corporation) back up and running. Ms. Hofstetter said the CIC does fall in the CED Department and that she has “taken it as far as” she can take it. Ms. Burhenne said Ms. Hofstetter has done a great deal of work on this and now they are stuck at the final obstacle, which is getting the BOCC Resolution to reestablish the CIC back from the Prosecutor’s Office. Mr. Lennon said that he wasn’t sure what that hold up was. Ms. Burhenne said she checked in with the Prosecutor’s Office, and they said that they have reached out to the CIC attorney, who wasn’t very responsive. Ms. Burhenne said she hasn’t heard anything from either the Prosecutor’s Office or the CIC attorney recently about the matter. 

Mr. Morgan asked if Ms. Hofstetter had heard anything more from a group that expressed interest in building a hotel in Middlefield. She said she has been to 3-4 meetings about this, and unfortunately it seems that the potential agreement between the group and the hotel management company has “fallen flat” due to paperwork issues. Ms. Hofstetter stated “It will happen, it’s just not there yet.”   

The Community and Economic Development Department’s Budget Hearing concluded at 2:49 pm.

2:50 PM to 3:35 PM Maintenance Glen Vernick 

Present were all members of Commissioners and staff and Director Glen Vernick and Budget Director Suzanne Sotkovsky

At the beginning Mr. Gorton clarified that this hearing was for Maintenance Staff as the Maintenance Projects budget hearing is later in the schedule (5/21 at 1:05pm)

Mr. Vernick began by stating the increase in the number of buildings that fall under their jurisdiction - including JFS (which has moved to the new county building), The West G Senior Center and the continuance of 470 Center St.  In the future there will also be the new Senior Center at the current former Dollar General site on Chardon Road.  

A continuing theme of the discussions involved the difficulty finding and retaining staff due to the lower pay grades available compared to other jobs available in the community.  There was a discussion of whether Maintenance could hire an HVAC technician or whether it would be best to continue to hire outside contractors.  Mr. Vernick stated that the electrician they hired has worked out and is kept very busy.

There was a discussion of the request for new vehicles.  Mr. Lennon referred to a request from the Board of Elections for a vehicle and asked Mr. Vernick if the board of Elections could use one of the Maintenance vehicles.  Mr. Vernick stated that they “...could work it out, even if I have to give them my truck”.  

There was a discussion of work that is being done for the Auditor’s Office in the Annex on Chardon Square and the Opera House: (a bathroom), sidewalks near the Annex (but not in front of it), the elevator at the Opera House location, stairwell in back and the Porch.  Mr. Lennon stated that the Commissioners had not approved these projects and asked if there could be a procedure so that the Commissioners approve of any work requested by other elected officials.  Mr. Vernick said that a recent request for new carpet did go before the Board and was approved.

Mr. Vernick said that certain work, such as landscaping and grass cutting at the new Senior Center might be best to go out to bid.

At 3:20 Mr. Dvorak left the meeting.

It was noted that there were a number of open positions.  Mr. Lennon said that he didn’t think they would be able to hire a HVAC tech for $50,000.  Mr. Gorton said that some of the positions might need to be regraded. Ms. Burhenne stated that she would meet with Mr. Vernick to rework all the titles and pay rates.

The Commissioners agreed that the $1.3 Million total increase appeared okay.  Mr. Gorton stated that right now, they would have a $1.6 Million deficit in the General Fund.  He said that they do have $4.8 Million unappropriated, but that this amount would be for increases for all departments.

Mr. Gorton asked again if Maintenance purchased a new van, if the Board of Elections would be able to use it.  

Hearing ended at 3:36 pm

3:40 PM to 4:10 PM Prosecutor Jim Flaiz 

Mr. Dvorak was not present for this hearing.  In addition to Mr. Flaiz, also attending were Finance Manager Samantha Harris and Assistant Prosecutor Laura LaChapelle

There was a substantial discussion about the addition to the County Prosecutor’s staff of the municipal prosecutor’s staff from Chardon, which caused a sizable increase in payroll for this year and more for next year since they just took over the municipal prosecutor’s staff on April 30, 2024r.  They will also have 3% raises as agreed by the Commissioners last year.

Cost for salaries, benefits and OPERS will be $428,493 with $285,804.20 for the former municipal employees.

Observer Note:  As a result of the agreement between the Board of County Commissioners and the City of Chardon, the Commissioners agreed not to interfere with the attempt of Chardon to obtain a change in law at the Statehouse in Ohio to shift prosecution responsibilities for unincorporated areas of the county to the County Prosecutor.  The law did change as of April of 2024.  See LWVG Observer report for February 13, 2024 for more information. 

Mr. Lennon asked if the amount was $285,000 that Chardon would not have to pay.  

Mr. Flaiz said that he hoped to get $24,000 from Chardon for their share of cases (about 9.7% of cases).

Mr. Flaiz said that the Victim Advocates will still be covered by Chardon. Also, the villages of Burton, Middlefield and South Russell still have their own prosecutors.

Mr. Flaiz said that they brought over the Chardon Municipal Court prosecutor, assistant prosecutor, part-tIme prosecutor, part-tIme legal assistant.  The City of Chardon is still responsible for court security as well as vicitim’s witness and some office space.

Prosecutor’s office budget is projected to total of $3 million, with $2.74 Million from the General Fund for 2025.

Mr. Gorton asked if the Prosecutor needed to hire more staff due to the perceived backlog in items that the Commissioners have asked to be reviewed.  

Mr. Spidalieri asked if they needed to hire in-house counsel due to the work coming for the conversion of the Dollar General site for the Office on Aging.

It was also asked if they could charge Bainbridge, since they have the highest number of criminal cases, but Mr. Flaiz said this would not be permitted by law.

Mr. Flaiz offered the opinion that some of the issues between the Commissioner’s office and the Prosecutor’s office had to do with lack of communication and others had to do with HR issues which Mr. Flaiz felt could have been handled by the County HR dept.  Mr. Flaiz also said there were issues with Gilmour Security regarding contract issues.

Mr. Flaiz said that the combination of the county and municipal prosecutors created efficiencies and that Sheriff Hildebrand was satisfied with the new arrangement.

Mr. Gorton asked about a separate issue regarding Geauga Recovery and Mr. Flaiz said he would look at the Opioid Fund question that the Commissioners wanted approved. Observer Note: This question appears to be based on discussions with Geauga Recovery that took place at the May 14, 2024 Commissioner’s meeting in which they agreed to fund money for a lease for additional space for Geuaga Recovery.  

There was a discussion of a proposal put forward by Juvenile Judge Timothy Grendell to begin using Lake County instead of the Geauga/Portage Juvenile Detention Center.  Mr. Flaiz said the only issue is that the Commissioners have to terminate their arrangement with Geauga/Portage first. Observer Note: This was further discussed at the May 21 Board of County Commissioners meeting.

Another question was raised regarding charging rent to Geauga Public Health.  Mr. Flaiz said that Mr. Jonathan Tiber, HDAC (Health District Advisory Council) President, had found a signed contract between Geauga Health and the City of Chardon which they had been looking for and which would answer the outstanding question as to whether there was a combined Health District.  Now that this contract was found it now appears to be settled that there was a combined health district and according to Ohio Revised Code, the Commissioners can charge rent to Geauga Public Health.

4:15 to 4:30 PM Other Departments - Observer Note: This hearing did not take place due to the fact that the hearing for the Prosecutor went late.  It has been rescheduled for May 21 at 4:15 pm.

Tuesday, May 21

8:45 AM to 9:15 AM Treasurer Chris Hitchcock and Deputy Treasurer Caroline Mansfield

Commissioner Lennon was absent

Ms. Mansfield reported that advertising was down and that contract services were increased, in particular for Red Tree for banking fees and payroll was increased.  

In terms of projected income, Treasurer fees and interest might go up more than estimated.  They have received two-third’s of the estimated interest amount already (before June 1).

Mr. Gorton noted that the County is under pressure to increase sales tax revenue estimates.

Mr. Hitchcock said it is best to “under estimate and over produce”.

Mr. Hitchcock also gave his opinion that even though the market is doing well that “something is coming” due to the amount of deficit spending happening at the federal level.  Mr. Hitchcock said that the County is in a good position and that government entities are only allowed to invest in Cash investment vehicles, and these can be redeemed at any time.

There was also an increase in medical expenses due to a current employee who is now utilizing the County medical plan instead of taking the waiver at this time.

Concluded at 8:59 am

12:00 PM to 1:00 PM Auditor/Automatic Data Processing (ADP) Charles Walder

All Commissioners and BOCC Staff were present. Also present were Auditor Walder, Chief Deputy Administrator of ADP Frank Antenucci, Chief Deputy Auditor Ron Leyde, Chief Deputy Manager of Fiscal, Real Estate and Appraisal Offices Pam McMahan, and Chief Compliance Officer Kate Jacob. 

The Auditor/ADP Budget Hearing began at 12:00 pm.

Mr. Walder said that the Auditor’s Office budget was up by about $500,000, but they have also had a $3 million increase in revenue. He noted that the largest factor in the $3 million revenue increase was correcting improper exempt conveyances and $2 million of the increased revenue goes into the general fund. Mr. Walder said they spent over $1 million on the 2023 property reappraisal process, including community outreach events to educate the public. He noted that they anticipated receiving 2,500 property valuation complaints after the revaluation, but they have seen only 10% of that, perhaps due in part to their efforts to educate Geauga taxpayers about the revaluation process. 

Mr. Walder shared that he would be testifying before the Ohio Legislature soon about potentially modifying Ohio House Bill 920 regarding how the 20 mill floor is calculated for school funding.  Observer Note: The 20 mill floor means that all Ohio School Districts are guaranteed at least 20 mills of funding by law. If a school district’s funding level drops below the 20 mill floor, a property tax increase (i.e., increased collection of existing levies) is instituted by the State for residents of those districts to get funding back up to the required level. More information about potential HB 920 changes proposed by Mr. Walder is available in the May 20, 2024 Budget Commission Observer Report. He noted that West Geauga and Berkshire schools received 20 mill floor adjustments. Mr. Walder predicted that increased inside millage property taxes ($10 million increase) and 20 mill floor adjustments ($6 million increase for residents of Berkshire and West G Schools) caused by the 2023 property revaluation will be noticed by most Geauga County residents this year when their mortgage payments go up after their annual escrow adjustments. 

Mr. Walder said that the Auditor’s Office is anticipating turning back about $500,000 in excess fees to County and local government entities.

Mr. Walder said that they have been revamping internal systems and infrastructure over the last few years and they are 60-70% through that process. He mentioned that the ReaLink (Property Search) update is now complete and information is now presented in easier to understand graphs. This was an 18-month process and the first ReaLink update in almost 20 years. Mr. Walder said he hopes another update won’t be needed for “a number of years,” though he said that he would rather “... stay up on it, and stay fresh, and spend a little bit as we go, rather than a big chunk….” 

Mr. Walder said he thinks they are getting “better and more streamlined” in the fiscal office. He said that they shifted to put more focus on budgets because they have more political subdivisions needing help in that area. However, he said he thinks that payroll still has “...too much overhead for producing a paycheck.” 

Mr. Walder said that they are having challenges getting vendors paid promptly due to the time it takes the Auditor’s Office to vet invoices and then get the payments passed in BOCC session. To improve this, they are planning to be non-check based for vendor payment by the end of the year. Additionally, Mr. Walder indicated that the Auditor of State has said that most other counties do not pass all invoices through BOCC sessions like Geauga does and eliminating that requirement would save time and money. However, he noted that going through session may serve as a check and balance function, so further discussions about this potential change are needed. Mr. Lennon pointed out that having invoices going through sessions gives the public the opportunity to learn about how taxpayer money is being spent. 

Mr. Walder said that the fiscal office has had a lot of work to do managing and reporting ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act) and CARES (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security) Act funds. Mr. Gorton asked where they were at with getting the $10 million in ARPA funding for the Courthouse renovation encumbered for Infinity Construction. Mr. Walder said that the Courthouse renovation is the result of a settlement agreement brought about by a lawsuit, and this is “... explicitly not permitted for the use of ARPA money.” He said there are also a number of complicated federal requirements that must be met in order to use ARPA money for construction. Mr. Walder recommended using the ARPA money to pay for salaries instead of construction costs, and then using the money saved by paying salaries with ARPA money to then pay for construction costs. He said that this approach is “cleanest” and would require less burdensome paperwork proving compliance in the event of a federal audit. Mr. Gorton asked if the ARPA money could only be used to pay patrolmen salaries in the Sheriff’s Office. Mr. Walder said that the Prosecutor’s Office’s interpretation of the ARPA regulations indicate that ARPA funds could be used to pay salaries in a number of different County departments, not just patrolmen.     

Mr. Lennon said the Auditor’s budget has increased from about $2.7 million in 2018 to about $4 million in 2023. Mr. Gorton said their 2024 adopted budget expenses were $5.1 million and their 2025 request is $5.86 million. Mr. Lennon asked if the Auditor’s budget will continue to climb. Mr. Walder said that he is budgeting to get the baseline level they need to operate, and then they will maintain that. He estimated that expenses will not continue to increase at this rate for much longer. Mr. Gorton pointed out that the property revaluation caused a big increase in expenses in 2023. Mr. Lennon asked if the approximately $5.8 million budget proposed for 2025 would be his comfort level going forward, and Mr. Walder agreed with this. 

At this point the focus shifted to the ADP budget. Mr. Walder corrected a misstatement he had made in the past regarding the ADP headcount. He had erroneously said that the number of ADP employees had doubled. He corrected this and said that the total salary amount had doubled, not the number of employees, which has gone from 13 to 15 full-time workers over the last few years. There are also currently four part-time students working in ADP. Mr. Walder said salaries have gone up so much because there has been a great deal of overtime due to the nature of the work they do to keep servers and switches working round-the-clock. He said ADP staff is having to come in during off-hours to do this work on a nearly weekly basis. He also pointed out that IT is a competitive field that requires competitive wages: “(With) IT professionals, you get exactly what you pay for…. they have across the board performed, and I’m comfortable that we’re getting our money’s worth.” Mr. Walder said that systems are continuing to get better and the number of system-related complaints have decreased greatly over the last few years due to the work of ADP.

Mr. Walder said that “cybersecurity is a huge draw and drain on us.” He gave the example of a warning that came out the night before from the EPA telling all water facilities to be on high alert and noted that small water systems are particularly being targeted. Mr. Lennon stated that “you know this world very well obviously and I don’t (but) we’re not a Fortune 500 company either.” Mr. Walder said “we’re (the County) a quarter-of-a-billion-dollar budgetary entity” and noted even the townships have millions of dollars in their budgets. He said that the entry-level price point of data security is a fixed number regardless of entity size and added “I don’t think we are by far the low-tier entity. We are one of the top five Counties in the state as far as money is concerned and wealth. That makes us a target.”

Mr. Walder said that most ADP budget line items have gone down in this budget submission, but salaries are up. Mr. Lennon said the 2024 adopted budget was $2.95 million and then was amended to $4.497 million, which Mr. Gorton said includes carryovers. Mr. Lennon said that the 2025 budget request is $4.176 million, which Mr. Walder said was roughly a $300,000 decrease from the prior year. Mr. Antenucci said that contract services are “going in a good direction with the combination of hosting, licensing and subscriptions.” He also said that he was comfortable with the proposed reduction in the computer equipment budget for 2025 although emergency repairs and replacements are always a possible unforeseen complication.

Mr. Walder said that the County predicted years ago that it would be out of the buildings at 470 Center Street by now, and so ADP had not planned for expenses related to that property. However, the County continues to be using that space, and the computer equipment there has been found to be in bad shape by ADP. ADP is trying to deal with this by shifting still usable equipment that is closer to end of life to Center Street when upgrades occur elsewhere in the County. Mr. Antenucci said the Center Street property should be set for computer equipment for at least two years.  

 

Mr. Lennon asked about the new help desk. Mr. Antenucci stated that they are migrating from an old help desk product that was launched in 2008 to a new modern help desk product; this migration will be complete in September. Mr. Lennon asked if the new help desk will be a big improvement, and Mr. Antenucci said that it would. Mr. Lennon inquired about the number of calls for assistance that ADP gets on a daily basis. Mr. Antenucci said they get some calls but more emails to the help desk. He added that the number of “tickets” overall is down, which he attributed to better infrastructure making it so things weren’t breaking as often as well as general improvement in the tech-savviness of end users.

Mr. Lennon asked about facility-related requests. Mr. Walder stated that “... the facilities down at the Square are probably less than optimal,” and Mr. Lennon agreed with this. Mr. Walder noted that his office has a lot of meetings, including Board of Revision and Budget Commission meetings, and the facilities are ill-suited to these meetings. He would like to improve the space for meetings as well as to make the space more functional for employees. He noted that they currently only have a single-stall bathroom and at times employees and meeting guests are having to wait in line to use it. Mr. Walder said that they have requested a redesign to add a second bathroom as well as a bullpen area to make room for more people. He also mentioned reworking space in the basement to create a bigger space for larger meetings, such as the ADP Board and Budget Commission meetings. Mr. Lennon stated that “It looks as though we’re going to remain on the Square in those old failing buildings for a long, long time, and it looks like the County is going to be forced to spend good money on those bad buildings.” Mr. Walder said his office spent about $42,000 last year on improvements, including having to buy air conditioning because it was “like an oven” in their meeting space. Mr. Walder talked about additional things that could be done to make the space more “liveable,” including painting and replacing the bathroom floor that may contain asbestos. Mr. Gorton noted that some of the things being discussed may be able to be done by the maintenance department. Mr. Walder pointed out that his office is now paying a cleaning service because they weren’t getting cleaning service from the maintenance department. He said that the offices were not vacuumed for five years prior to hiring cleaners and that the windows haven’t been cleaned in years. Mr. Walder stated “It’s not our space, it’s the public’s, and I think we owe it to them to preserve what they’ve invested in, even if it’s on a declining scale.”

Mr. Lennon asked about the outlay for ZeroEyes software, which uses existing security cameras to detect a drawn firearm, and Mr. Walder said it costs $45,000 a year for the licensing. Mr. Lennon said that he has heard concern from people that it might detect guns that were being concealed carried legally, and he was caught off guard by the software’s existence when he started getting these complaints about it from the public. Mr. Lennon expressed the opinion that implementing building security measures is under the Commissioners’ purview, not that of ADP, and he felt that, though ZeroEyes is a computer program, it is primarily used for security. Mr. Walder noted that the BOCC representative to ADP is the one who made the motion to buy this software at an ADP Board meeting and said “it’s incumbent upon these representatives I think to push that information up the food chain.” Mr. Lennon replied that perhaps this was just a miscommunication issue. Mr. Walder pointed out that the placement of security cameras was entirely a BOCC decision and ZeroEyes is essentially “... upgrading the software to the camera. The utilization of recognizing pixel forms as a weapon is just a piece of software.” Questions were asked about who was notified in the event that ZeroEyes identifies a drawn weapon, and this list of law enforcement responders was shared with the Commissioners by ADP staff.  Reviewer Note:  Rules regarding the carrying of concealed weapons can be found in ORC 2923.126. 

The Auditor/ADP Budget Hearing concluded at 1:21 pm.

1:05 PM to 1:50 PM Maintenance Projects Glen Vernick

All Commissioners and BOCC Staff except Mr. Morgan were present. Also present were Director Vernick and Fiscal Assistant Sotkovsky.

The Maintenance Projects Budget Hearing began at 1:23 pm.

Mr. Vernick said that there are many ongoing maintenance projects. The department recently added a project manager and they will be working together to determine priorities. They plan to meet with Mr. Morgan and Ms. Burhenne soon. 

Mr. Vernick said projects include working on septic for the Courthouse expansion and replacing a juvenile court chilling unit. He said there are a number of maintenance projects going on in the County Office Building and specifically mentioned working to get the Board of Elections space “situated” and getting the dehumidifier working in Archives.

Mr. Lennon asked if the Auditor’s Office has communicated with the Maintenance Department about the projects/concerns mentioned during the Auditor/ADP hearing (see above). Mr. Vernick said that they have communicated “a little bit.” Mr. Lennon asked if the Auditor’s windows have been cleaned, and Mr. Vernick said it hasn’t been done this year yet. Mr. Lennon asked if the County is providing janitorial services to the Auditor’s Office and Mr. Vernick said that this was the case but they are shorthanded. Mr. Lennon said Mr. Walder stated that his offices haven’t been cleaned by the County in five years and Mr. Vernick said that he would check into that. Mr. Lennon asked if it is true that the Auditor’s Office had hired their own cleaning service, and Mr. Vernick said that he had heard that was the case. Mr. Lennon asked him to confirm that County employees are still going in to clean there, and Mr. Vernick said yes, “as far as I’m aware,” and noted that four custodians work in that building. 

Mr. Vernick mentioned some other upcoming projects, including repaving the parking lot and redoing the roof at the Safety Center. Mr. Gorton said that the appropriations are already in place for those projects. After a request from Mr. Lennon to break down the maintenance projects budget, Mr. Gorton said it was as follows: $50,000 for professional services, $100,000 for the regular building improvement fund, $100,000 for 470 Center Street projects, $500,000 for County buildings on the Chardon Square, and $500,000 for the Safety Center’s 24-hour areas. Mr. Lennon questioned putting money into 470 Center Street, but Mr. Vernick pointed out that its future is uncertain and said “I’ve got to keep these buildings to a certain level.” Mr. Lennon questioned whether certain projects were needed there, such as line striping for the parking lot. Mr. Vernick said that there are still people working there and the Senior Center is still there, and he said “I have to protect our employees and the public that are coming to these buildings.” 

Mr. Lennon asked about the new doors for the jail, and Mr. Vernick said that the doors and the hardware have just come in. Mr. Vernick added that there has been a bird nesting problem in the awning at Post 2 that they are working to correct by enclosing the awning. He said that once this is completed, the new jail doors will be installed.

Mr. Dvorak asked about the design of the pad for the BOE (Board of Election) ballot box. Mr. Vernick said it is coming along and they are anticipating getting approval from the BOE for that. Mr. Lennon encouraged him to have BOE “sign off on everything they do.” Ms. Burhenne said that there were no quotes yet for this project because the design and location have not been agreed upon. She also mentioned that the Prosecutor’s Office had completed the BOE security contract with Guardian Security Company. Mr. Vernick said that they are working on making some corrections to the BOE space to make it ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) compliant. 

There was some discussion about the recycling containers at 470 Center Street and what will happen to them once the County is out of that property. There seemed to be consensus that the recycling site may be shut down, and it was noted that there are recycling containers available at the Geauga Trumbull Solid Waste facility near the County Office Building.      

The Commissioners praised the job that Mr. Vernick is doing. Mr. Gorton noted that there was “a good chunk of change in the building improvements fund” and said Mr. Vernick should let them know if additional maintenance needs are identified. 

The Maintenance Projects Budget Hearing concluded at 1:53 pm.

1:55 PM to 2:25 PM Public Defender Robert Umholtz

Mr. Lennon, Mr. Dvorak and BOCC Staff members were present. Also present were Public Defender Umholtz, Office Manager Victoria Janosik, and Chief Assistant Public Defender Paul Mooney. Mr. Spidalieri was absent.

The Public Defender Budget Hearing began at 1:58 pm.

Mr. Gorton noted that the Public Defender’s Office is requesting to increase the hours of an employee and to offer benefits to that employee. Mr. Umholtz stated that they have hired a social worker and would like to move her from part-time to full-time. He said that they are having a large increase in mental health cases and noted that they currently have 14 “not guilty by reason of insanity” cases and an additional 5 of these cases that are ongoing.

Mr. Umholtz said the social worker is a “true professional” who has familiarity with area mental health service providers. He said that “The drug and alcohol treatment needs are almost easy now compared to what’s going on with mental health issues. So, we really need her (the social worker).” He noted that the County will be reimbursed for 85% of this expense by the State. Mr. Dvorak asked how many cases have dual mental health and drug/alcohol dependence diagnoses. Mr. Umholtz said that “the vast majority” of drug cases have a dual diagnosis.

Mr. Gorton asked if they were at full staff, and Mr. Umholtz confirmed that they were.

Mr. Lennon inquired about the Public Defender’s facilities. Mr. Umholtz said that some updates would be nice, including reconfiguration of the rooms. However, they would like to stay in their current location due to their proximity to the courts. Ms. Burhenne gave assurances that their broken elevator would be fixed once the materials needed arrive. 

Mr. Lennon noted that they are requesting new computers and that they will be reimbursed by the State at 85%. Ms. Janosik said the current computers are quite out of date. 

Mr. Lennon said he felt that the Public Defender’s office should be equal to the Prosecutor’s Office. Mr. Umholtz asked for parity with the Prosecutor’s Office’s salary budget, as the Prosecutor’s Office now has about $9,100 more than the Public Defender for this. The Commissioners agreed to this.  

The Public Defender Budget Hearing concluded at 2:14 pm.

2:30 PM to 3:00 PM Veterans Michele Pemberton 

All Commissioners and BOCC Staff were present. Also present were Director Pemberton, Veterans' Service Commission President John Riha, and Veterans' Service Commissioner Skip Boehnlein.

The Veterans’ Service Commission Budget Hearing began at 2:29 pm.

Ms. Pemberton presented their monthly claims report and noted that claims have increased “tremendously.” She said they had over 1,300 claims last year with three service officers. She noted that they have transported 120 veterans to receive VA services so far in 2024 and remarked that the van the County purchased to make these trips has “... saved our County so much money.”

Ms. Pemberton said their budget request was $695,612. Mr. Gorton stated that there was a $20,000 increase in other expenses, a $10,000 increase in travel expenses and an (unspecified) increase in hospitalization insurance. Ms. Pemberton clarified that the increases in travel and hospitalization will only happen if they are able to hire a new CVSO (County Veteran Service Officer). 

Ms. Pemberton said that she has been working for the Veterans’ Service Commission for 23 years and will stay and train one more CVSO before retiring. She said that this is so that the County will have three CVSOs at all times because that level of staffing is needed. Mr. Spidalieri stated that the department is “doing a great job.”

Ms. Pemberton said that the annual Veterans Resource Fair will be at Veterans Legacy Woods Park on July 31. The VA and about 15 County agencies will come out and provide a number of services at this event.

Ms. Pemberton said that the County Memorial by the Courthouse needs to be redone and they will be working with the Maintenance Department on this. She stated that once a plan is fully in place they will be coming to the County Commissioners for approval. Ms. Pemberton said that they are hoping to include sitting benches and extra-wide sidewalks that can accommodate wheelchairs.   

The Veterans Department Budget Hearing concluded at 2:43 pm.

3:05 PM to 3:35 PM Coroner Dr. John Urbancic, with Administrative Assistant Dorothy Battles

Commissioner Lennon was absent

Dr. Ubancic discussed the number of cases, which he noted have been rising.  Prior to 2020, there were about 52-60 cases.  Dr. Ubancic gave some other numbers to indicate increases since then, such as in 2020 there were 71, in 2021 there were 113, and there have been 29 so far this year.  He felt they would be on track for 75-80 cases this year.  There has been an increase in costs for an autopsy, which used to be $1200 and now are $2000.

Mr. Gordon said that there was an increase in payroll due to the elected official increase (Observer Note: As stated previously, elected official salaries were mandated by Ohio Revised Code to increase due to the fact that Geauga County registered over 95,000 in the recent US census)

Ms. Battles’ position is also a new one.

Mr. Urbancic discussed a project for this year which was to convert old files so that they can be stored on the current database.  Right now, these files are on an old server, which would cost over $6,000 to replace, whereas the software to convert them would cost just $2,500.

Mr. Urbancic also asked if they have to upgrade their website and pay to do that?  He had heard that it could cost $10,000 - $12,000.  He stated that they have a page, which contains links to some forms that users can download to request different kinds of information.   Mr. Gorton looked at their website, which he stated is based on the same design as the current county website.

Dr. Ubancic said that he didn’t keep track of deaths from Covid as he considered them “natural causes.”  He stated that it is his opinion that more people died from social isolation caused by the restrictions than from the Covid virus.  Dr. Ubancic noted that, unlike adjacent counties, overdoses are down, with only one this year, but he stated that suicides are up.

Dr. Urbancic said they have a new vehicle, but wondered how long they should plan on keeping this vehicle.  Mr. Gorton said that it could be 3-4 years and then, with the low mileage, they could transfer the vehicle to another department, which they did with their last vehicle.

Hearing ended at 3:31 pm

3:40 PM to 4:10 PM Commissioners - Gerry Morgan, County Administrator

Income - Mr. Gorton discussed the $500,000 projected increase in sales tax.  He said he was confident that this projected increase will end up being accurate.  He said there was a decrease in January, but it was just a dip versus the prior year and was still above prior years.  He said they would continue to monitor it.

Expenses - Mr. Gorton said that payroll is up due to the statutory increases and the 3% wage increases.  They also hired a new position - Assistant County Administrator Linda Burhenne.

Archives are no longer under the Commissioners, but they are under ADP so their budgetary needs would be covered by ADP and not in the Commissioners’ budget.

Miscellaneous Fund - in their budget submission they reduced the category of “other” expenses and took out the item of special council for the prosecutor.  The amount of Postage was increased and there was an increase in appointed counsel fees for indigents as well as dues and subscriptions.  Observer Note:  These items were not discussed in detail.

The fund for Tax Levies and Assessments was increased because of Metzenbaum (Observer Note: This was not explained and it was not stated whether the County is still in arrears for the Metzenbaum property.  See Observer Report for February 13, 2024)

There was a projected increase in the Joint Geauga/Trumbull Juvenile Detention Center.  At this point, there was a discussion of whether the Commissioners will end this joint venture and whether it will occur on June 30, 2024. 

This was discussed at the Commissioners meeting that morning.  See Observer Report for May 21, 2024.  Mr. Dvorak also mentioned that Portage will be sending Geauga $220,000 that was owed due to mistakes in accounting in prior years.

Miscellaneous Increases listed include:  Building improvements, Airport (adjusted expenses). Various decreases listed include COBRA and Youth Center.  Mr. Gorton stated that there wasn’t a budget item for the Senior Center Construction.

ARPA - There was a discussion of how to utilize the $10 Million in the ARPA account.  It was suggested that it could be used for salaries.  Mr. Dvorak said he would like an opinion and wants to get it figured out.

Hearing concluded at 3:51 pm

3:53 pm - Other Departments - No department representatives were present.

Mr. Gordon said this was a wrap up of other smaller departments who don’t have their own budget hearing but do submit estimated budgets and requests.  He said that all of these budgets, except for the Board of DD (Disabilities) and Juvenile/Probate Court were small.

Board of Developmental Disabilities (DD) - Overall, a modest increase in expenses and revenues including a slight increase in salary and, in Residential Services there were transfers in. There was a reported overall decrease in contract services.  It was stated there was a total of $1.6 Mill overall decrease. Observer Note:  Residential Services appears to refer to the expenses associated with the provision of residential services for DD clients at Metzenbaum and elsewhere.  

Clerk of Courts - $23,000 decrease

Dog Warden - $1700 decrease

Emergency Services - $13,000 increase due to new wages.  They are requesting a new vehicle.

Mr. Spidalieri asked how many vehicles they now have and Mr. Gorton said they have 2 plus an old Impala that they want to get rid of.

Juvenile/Probate Court - Mr. Gordon said that they don’t provide an expense budget but they do give some revenue numbers.  Several revenue accounts went up.  They indicated $711,000 additional in all funds.

Law Library - Budget is down $8,000

Mental Health - increases in revenue to offset increase in expenses.

Municipal Court - up $8,000

Mr. Spidalieri said that the county should be paying less, not more.  He referenced a discussion (see above) with the Prosecutor regarding how the County is taking over cases. He said that Chardon City will be saving almost $300,000 with the new arrangement of having the county prosecutor take over municipal cases.  Mr. Gorton said that this expense item is a separate thing.  This is for the Judge, not the prosecutors.  Mr. Spidaliari said that the only thing that Chardon is paying for is their cases, which would be about $27,000.

Mr. Morgan also gave his opinion that the amount charged to commissioners should be zero.

There was continued discussion of this, and Mr. Gorton said that he would confer with Judge Terri Stupica and Mr.  Flaiz (Prosecutor).

Planning Commission- Increases due to wage increase; $8,225 for computers and memberships and dues.  They have hired an intern.  The total increase requested was $36,156.  Mr. Dvorak suggested that the County should give them $20,000 and then if they need more in 2025 they can request it.

Recorder - Slight increase due to the elected official increase and a slight increase for expenses.  Their overall budget decreased by $25,500.

Soil and Water - Slight Increases in revenue and payroll, other decreases for a total decrease of almost $11,000; Local  match decreased by about $11,000.

Hearing ended at 4:12 pm

Mr. Spidalieri thanked Mr. Gorton and said that he felt he was underpaid.  He referenced the Auditor’s staff and stated that many on that staff make more money.  He also said that salaries for those who previously worked in Archives increased once they were under ADP and he didn’t know why there was this increase.   

Mr. Gorton stated that he thought he was being fairly compensated.

Mr. Dvorak said that the people in Archives were paid a lot less when he was on that Board.  He felt that the people in Archives are now being paid fairly.

Mr. Spidalieri suggested a salary study and Ms. Burhenne said that she is working on preparing something regarding longevity.

Mr. Dvorak said that every department complements Adrian (Gorton).

Next Regular Meeting of the BOCC: June 11, 2024

More Information and Posted Minutes: Available here

Observers: Sarah McGlone, Rooney Moy, and Gail Roussey

Editor/Reviewer: Anne Ondrey

Date Submitted: 6/11/24 

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