A large silver maple was toppled Friday onto power lines and a home on E. Main Street just east of S. Ludlow Street in Phillipsburg as the remnants of Hurricane Helene brought high winds and drenching rain to the area.
Ron Nunnari | The Register-Herald
PHILLIPSBURG — Mayor Shawna Newsom opened the Oct. 1 council meeting by thanking the village firefighters for their work after the Sept. 27 storm.
Fire Chief Chris Rowher later told the ‘Eaton Register-Herald’ the village had been lucky. The fire department provided mutual aid on two fires, but in its own area it only had to deal with downed trees and power lines.
The contract for the troublesome reporting software has been found and sent to the village solicitor, and Rowher said his understanding is that the contract can be terminated with no problem.
Rowher told council Engine 80 had a water leak in the tank. Council approved the repair quote of $1,090. Two other companies would only give a range of prices ranging from $8,000 to $20,000.
He warned that Medic unit has 150,000 miles on it and the village should begin looking for a replacement. He suggested looking for a demo model used by suppliers.
Members approved entering into a Memorandum of Understanding with the Pitsburg Fire Department, where Rowher is also fire chief, to share a staff car. Currently he uses his private car in Phillipsburg, and neither his nor the village’s insurance will cover any accidents. He said the cost would be split and the decal on the side will be just “PFD Chief.”
Council also authorized him to apply for a grant to replace the department’s air packs, which are also becoming outdated.
The mayor and the council members have checked the solar-powered speed signs. All the parts are there, so Councilmember Chris Steiner said he would begin acquiring the 12-foot pipes needed to erect them and contact Ohio Utilities Protection Service to be sure he was not putting the signs on top of any wires or water mains.
Newsom passed out the Fraud Assessment Risk questionnaires from the State Auditor’s office. According to the auditor’s officer, this questionnaire is to provide information about specific risks of fraud related to government operations and to “ensure that the entity has appropriate policies and procedures in place to prevent and detect fraud, and that those policies and procedures are being followed.”
She warned that failure to fill it out could lead to a special audit, at the village’s expense.
Phillips assured the newer members they were not expected to know of things done before they had taken office, and “N/A” would be appropriate in some cases, but by now they know of the procedures being followed.
As a hypothetical example, Newsom pointed out that Hope Hoard, planning the village Halloween Party, would not submit a register receipt that also had her groceries on it.
Hoard was good-natured about the ribbing she took over the Oct. 26 Halloween party’s starting time of 3 a.m. on the village’s Facebook page. Obviously, she meant 3 p.m.
The next council meeting will be at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 15, at the municipal offices 10868 Brookville Phillipsburg Rd.
