Representatives from several local entities gathered in Bethel Township for a Joint Government Meeting on Monday evening to discuss their respective issues with one another.

Members of the Bethel Township Board of Trustees, New Carlisle City Council, the Tecumseh Local School Board, and the Clark County Commissioners were in attendance, as well as Clark County Auditor John Federer and State Representative Kyle Koehler.

The Tecumseh School Board conducted the meeting, with new Superintendent Norm Glismann saying that the school year started out “smoothly” with just a few minor hiccups regarding transportation on the first day. Glismann said he has been spending time going around the district getting to know employees’ names and their positions.

Peter Scarff of the Tecumseh Local Board of Education said that everyone in the district was ready to put the Brad Martin scandal behind them and begin anew. Scarff said the board reviewed procedures with the State Auditor concerning manners in which to prevent such thefts within the district. He noted that the State Auditor recommended only that the district “shore up” their cash handling procedures, saying that everything else was up to standard. Scarff said that all of the locks in all district buildings have been replaced, noting that it came at a “great expense,” but that it granted the district a more secure level of control. He also said that access to keys is being strictly limited, especially those to principals’ offices were money is kept.

Scarff said that the auditor’s sole recommendation spoke of the thoroughness of the district treasurer as well as ‘just how deceptive our former Superintendent was,” Scarff said.

Bethel Township Fire Chief Jacob King said that his department would be hosting a couple of community outreach meetings in coming weeks, where comments from the community regarding what services should be provided by the fire department will be welcomed.

King answered several questions from New Carlisle City Council members regarding staffing and finances within the Bethel Township Fire Department. Councilman John Krabacher asked King if the Bethel department was full-time or part-time. King answered that his department is a “stipend part-time” department, noting that 26 of his 57 staff members are part-time employees, with the rest being volunteers, or paid-per-call. King said although his station is almost always staffed 24 hours per day, that none of his employees work 24-hour shifts. He said that he usually staffs between four and eight personnel each night.

Councilman Rick Lowrey asked the township what their annual payroll for their fire department was. Township Fiscal Officer Melanie Cochran said that both Station 51 and Station 54 incurred $493,000 in payroll costs for 2014.

County Commissioner John Detrick announced a list of upcoming fall festivals in the area, saying “It’s a great time to be a Clark Countian,” noting the Heritage of Flight Festival, Apple Butter Festival, Sweet Corn Festival, CultureFest, and many others.

Detrick also urged residents of Bethel Township to come together to consider switching to one waste hauler, saying that the City of New Carlisle sees a cost savings by doing so. He said that New Carlisle residents typically pay around $14 per month for waste services, while residents in the rest of the county pay around $20 per month. Detrick also said that one trash truck on the road was equal to 224 regular vehicles concerning wear and tear to the road surface.

Commissioner David Herier spoke on the Tremont City barrel fill situation, saying that State Representative Kyle Koehler was very passionate about the issue, and noted that all Clark County residents should be equally engaged, saying that the barrel fill affects the entire county.

Representative Koehler said that 750 people attended the open forum held last week at Northwestern High School with the Ohio EPA. Two plans have been proposed for cleaning up the thousands of gallons of toxic waste buried near an aquifer in Tremont City, one of which would dig up the toxins and dispose of them completely, while the other would dig up some of the pollutants and re-bury the rest.

Koehler said that barrels were placed in a large hole dug into the ground in the 1970s, and that 304,000 gallons of toxic waste were poured on top of the barrels. Koehler noted that the matter would very likely “end up in litigation” and that the taxpayers would ultimately fund the solution through federal tax dollars or the purchase of products from suppliers responsible for the mess in the first place.

Koehler said that because taxpayers would likely end up paying for the solution anyway, that the project should be “done right,” saying that he hopes the plan to remove all of the waste completely is adopted. He said it has been estimated that removing the waste completely will cost $56 million, and that to remove the waste and re-bury it would cost $26 million.