Vol. X No. 3

Recycling Report

	1.4		tons of aluminum cans
	7.1		tons of bi-metal cans
	13.4		tons of glass
	3.8		tons of HDPE plastics
	3.1		tons of PETE plastics
	30.2		tons of newspapers
	7.0		tons of scrap metal through the dumpster program

Dumpster Days

Drop-Off Hours for Yard Waste!!

Compost & Wood Chips Available

Free compost and wood chips are available from the Township. If you are interested, contact John Szefcyk, Road Superintendent, at 988-5833.

Have a problem?  Complaint forms are available at the Township Hall, inside the white bulletin board, or may be downloaded from the Township’s website.

Amherst Township Trustee Meetings may be viewed on Amherst Cable Channel 12. They will air for 7 days, running Mon thru Mon, following the 2^nd and 4^th Tuesdays of the month. Air times are at 9 am, 4 pm, & 11 pm. Zoning Commission meetings will be shown 8 am, 3 pm & at the conclusion of the 11pm Trustee meetings. All airings are subject to change.

Conservative Development

Amherst Township amended the township Zoning Resolution on March 22, 2005 to offer Conservation Development, a type of PUD development, as an “optional” land use to township property owners in the “R-1” (0.5-acre) and “R-AG” (1.0-acre) zoning districts per ORC §519.021(C). The existing “R-1” & “R-AG” zoning regulations continue to apply in these districts, unless the Zoning Commission and trustees approves an application of a property owner to subject the owner’s property to Conservation Development regulations. Upgraded regulations were approved on August 23, 2005 to ensure that contiguous property owners are informed of public hearings on imminent Conservation Development applications.

The Amherst Township Conservation Development zoning regulations offer property developers a more flexible arrangement of building units, versus the existing applicable zoning regulations. In addition, property owners are ensured of obtaining "statistical" density in terms of the number of building units allowed. In other words, if a property consists of 100-acres in an “R-AG” district, a property developer is ensured of the construction of 100 homes.

This statistical density guarantee should facilitate the financial decision making of property developers, and generally will allow for the construction of additional homes, estimated at an increase of 20% more housing units. The flexible home arrangement should allow for a more efficient use and installation of supporting infrastructure, thus reducing installation cost. The statistical density and flexibility in home arrangements should improve the property value and potential earnings for property developers.

If a property developer chooses to apply Conservation Development zoning to their property, there are several conditions that must be met. These conditions are beneficial to the township and residents, and in some cases, also a benefit to the marketing of the property owner's development. Some of the main conditions are:

1.

A minimum of 40% of the land must be conserved as common open space. Deed restrictions and an agreement approved by Amherst Township shall identify the common open space, and the restriction from further development. The open space may be held by the owners of the Conservation Development area, Amherst Township, a Homeowners Association, the Lorain County Metroparks, or a combination of these entities, as defined in the agreement approved by Amherst Township.

---

FEATURED EMPLOYEE

Janice DeAngelis is our featured employee. Janice has worked for the Township for 5 years and is currently the Chairperson for the Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA). If someone wants to do something that does not necessarily agree with the current zoning, they bring it before the ZBA. Examples may be lot splits, building, or running a business that is not a permitted use in the area. The ZBA also annually reviews all of the “Conditional Uses” in the township to make sure everyone is still in compliance. As Chairperson, Janice sends out meeting notices to the newspapers and to neighboring property owners. She is also responsible for running the meetings.

Janice likes learning about the zoning in the township and what makes a community appealing, as well as meeting new people in the township. She also enjoys working with the other board members and says they have a fair and professional board. The bad part of her job is having to make hard decisions that are in the best interest overall to the township, but makes the applicant unhappy. Janice was also a member of the “Safety Task Force” committee.

Janice grew up in rural Ashtabula County, where her family still lives today. She completed a Bachelor of Science degree in Education from Bowling Green State University. She moved to Amherst Township in 1986. She has been married for 27 years to her husband, Frank, who is a manager at Nordson Corporation. They have two children. Kristin is 24 and is teaching High School English in Charlotte, NC. David is 23 and is working on his doctorate in Computer Engineering at the University of Texas in Austin, while he is teaching and doing research assistance.

Janice works full time for the Lorain County Chapter of the American Red Cross where she is the Director of “Education and Training”. She is responsible for managing all of the First Aid, CPR, Water Safety, and Babysitter’s Training programs in the County.

Curfew

Contact Sheriff’s Dept.

If residents know of, or see, any suspicious activity in the township or at the Amherst Township Park, please contact the Sheriff’s Dept. at 329-3710

Middle Ridge Road
Traffic Study

At the request of the Amherst Township Trustees, the County Engineer had a consulting engineer perform a traffic study of Middle Ridge Road intersections with Eddystone Drive, Oberlin/Hidden Valley Drive, Oberlin Road, and Nordson Drive to determine if left turn lanes would be warranted. The study determined that left hand turn lanes are warranted on Middle Ridge Road at Eddystone Drive and Oberlin Road.

The study recommended modifying the traffic signal at Oberlin/Hidden Valley Drive to allow for a westbound left turn arrow. The County Engineer is reviewing the recommended signal modifications. The signal modifications could be implemented this year if deemed appropriate.

Plans will be prepared for the addition of the recommended turning lanes with the intent to apply for Issue II funding in 2006, and with construction to be done in 2007.

Please use caution when approaching these intersections, as the township has experienced multiple vehicle accidents at these approaches.

Township
Property Purchase

Amherst Township completed the acquisition of 9.00 acres of property on August 1, 2005, at a sales price of $135,000.  Total expenditure of taxpayer dollars, inclusive of all closing costs, lot split, and recording fees amounted to $139,426, or $15,492 per acre.

The property consists of 223 feet of frontage on the east side of Oberlin road, immediately across the street from the existing township hall.  Available utilities include sanitary sewer, gas, water, electric, and communication lines.

The land acquisition will accommodate future township growth, and the potential for additional fire, ambulance, and emergency medical service.

F.A.C.E.

The FACE board has received acknowledgement from the IRS and is now able to accept donations that will allow the donor to take a tax deduction. You may send donations to FACE at 7530 Oberlin Road, Elyria, OH, 44035.

Tom Hupman has joined the FACE board as a 4-year Trustee. Tom is a retired K-Mart store manager and brings a strong management and finance background to the board.

Dr. Malcolm Peel has joined FACE as a grant writer. He brings a tremendous amount of experience in this area and will be invaluable as FACE moves forward.

F.A.C.E.’s first project will be a combination Rest Room/Concession Stand in the Amherst Township Park.

Permits Required

Residents are reminded that permits are needed for pools, decks, porches, patios, gazebos, fences, ponds, signs, garages, new construction, building additions, accessory buildings, and driveways. When a permit is applied for before the start of construction, the fee will be reduced by 50%. Be sure you or your contractor has obtained a permit. Payments must be made by check only. Cash is not accepted.

Please contact Don Gargas, Amherst Township Zoning Inspector for these permits. Office hours for the Zoning Inspector are from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays. He can be reached at 988-5866. Voice Mail is checked daily.

LIFECARE

Amherst Township, as a member of the Sandstone Joint Ambulance District, has chosen “LifeCare” to be their ambulance provider. President Maude DeLa Porte and Vice-President Herb DeLa Porte own and operate LifeCare. They can be reached at 323-6111. To learn more about their services, visit their website at http://www.lifecareambulance.com. For more information about LifeCare as well as links to other related websites visit http://www.geocities.com/lifecaredispatch.

Attention!
Hidden Valley Residents

Please do not rake leaves onto the street as it restricts water flow into the catch basins when it rains, causing drainage problems for you and your neighbors! The township does not pick up leaves. However, you can bring leaves and other yard waste to the Township Garage for disposal.

Preparing for Winter

• As a safety issue, please do not pile snow around fire hydrants. It is best to keep hydrants clear of any snow, excess mounding of soil, or plants.
• Also, when cleaning your driveways, do not plow or shovel snow onto the streets after the Township/County has plowed.
• Mailboxes should be inspected to make sure the posts are in good condition before the winter snowplowing begins.
• Be aware that the bridge decks freeze before the pavement does, causing them to be slippery even when the roads are clear.

Recycling Incentive Contest

Again in 2005, there will be an incentive program to encourage recycling. This incentive program is an eligibility requirement of the "Solid Waste Grant" award received by Amherst Township.

This program will consist of a raffle to be held in conjunction with the township’s "dumpster events". To enter the raffle, simply fill out the entry form below. Bring the completed form along with a blue bag of recyclables or recyclable yard waste to the dumpster event. Winners will be drawn during one of the regularly scheduled Trustee meetings.

Items that may be recycled in the blue bags are:

Newspapers are to be placed in a separate blue bag from the rest of the recyclables.  Also, please rinse all food and beverage containers before placing them in a blue bag.

For the July Recycling Contest:

Winners of a $20 gift certificate were:

Charles Barckert, Nan Cornish, Lisa Ganobcik, Dennis Hodkey, and Virginia Szilvasy.

Winners of a $25 gift certificate were:

Philip Bak, Ted Balzer, Robert Barckert, Brian Bowman, Michelle Cawrse, Matthew Cawrse, Dale Cary, Marilyn Cesear, Bill Farlow, Frank Fruner, Dave Fly, Daniel Fly, Janice Gargasz, Richard Herman, Brian Hodkey, Diana Horn, Jeanette Kosakowski, Wendy Lasso, Frank Lasso, Deborah Mann, Nancy Metzler, JoAnn Orosz, Roger Reaser, Eileen Rockwell, Jacki Rich, Al Schmitt, David Schmitkons, Sarah Schmitkons, Carol Schmitkons, Kelly Schermer, Jeanette Sciarrotta, Barb Shinsky, Cynthia Tipton, Jack Trewella, Dorothy Wilford, and Patricia Wright.

RAFFLE ENTRY FORM

For “Recycling Incentive Contest”
Dumpster Days: October 6th, 7th, and 8th, 2005
(Thursday, Friday, and Saturday – Time: 7:00am to 3:30pm)

   TRICK-OR-TREAT   

“Trick-or-Treat” in Amherst Township will be held on Sunday, October 30th, from 1:00 – 3:00 p.m. this year. Residents that wish to pass out candy should turn on their outside lights.

Also on Sunday, October 30th, the City of Amherst Fire Department will be sponsoring a “Costume Contest” with registration starting at 3:00 p.m. at the Sans Springs Building, located at 480 Park Ave. in Amherst. Judging for the contest will start promptly at 4:00 p.m.

The annual “Halloween Parade” will follow, from 4:30 – 5:00 p.m. In case of inclement weather, the parade will be cancelled and the “Costume Contest” will be held at the Amherst Fire Department located at 414 Church St. in Amherst.

               

NOTE: New Earlier Meeting Times:

Trustee Meetings now at 7:00 p.m. – Zoning Commission Meetings now at 6:30 p.m.