January 2022

hamilton township administration Text Text  7780 S. State Route 48 Maineville, OH 45039 Phone: (513) 683.8520 Fax: (513) 683.4325 Joe Rozzi - Board Chair Mark Sousa - Trustee Darryl Cordrey - Trustee Kurt Weber - Fiscal Officer Township Administrator Brent Centers (513) 239.2372 Police Department Scott Hughes - Police Chief (513) 683.0538 (Non Emergency) Fire & Emergency Services Jason Jewett - Fire Chief (513) 683.1622 (Non Emergency) Public Works Director Kenny Hickey (513) 683.5360 Zoning Administrator Lindsey Gehring (513) 683.8520 Assistant Fiscal Officer Ellen Horman (513) 239.2377 Human Resources Kellie Krieger (513) 239.2384 Community Development Coordinator Nicole Earley (513) 683.5320 January 2022 Text Happy New Year! 2022 is sure to be a very exciting year for Hamilton Township with lots of projects, developments, and park improvements to benefit our Township as a whole. Your Board of Trustees is investing $250,000 into park improvements that our community had an opportunity to weigh in on with an online survey. The survey results that gained 50% and higher of the votes included the following. At Mounts Park: upgrading the walk trails with trail markers, installing a rustic/natural playground, installing docks on both lakes and chip sealing the driveway. At Testerman Park: paving the walk trails and upgrading/repairing the shelters. At Marr Park: constructing a shelter. Your Board of Trustees will discuss these options further at our upcoming retreat scheduled in February. With winter upon us, it is nice to dream about being back outside enjoying our parks. As we get our typical strange Ohio weather where we see more than one season in a day, head down to Testerman Park to check out the Storybook Stroll we installed last fall. Halle and Tiger and the Bucketfillers is a story about spreading kindness by becoming a bucket filler. This project was completed through a collaborative partnership with ARCS, the Violence Free Coalition and our Community Development and Public Works Departments. It's sure to warm your heart and teach the kids a valuable lesson about spreading kindness, all while getting some exercise in with a family walk. a new year Newsletter Text Text Hamilton Township Police Department had an unforgettable 2021. Most notably was the tragic death of four year-old Emerie Schandorf-Woode, whose death shook our residents to the core. We were overwhelmed by the support our community offered for the family and our first responders. In the months following her death, our streets are still lined with Emerie’s favorite colors: blue and purple. To ensure that her memory is never forgotten, a trail at Mounts Park will be named in her honor later this year. Hamilton Township Police Department’s commitment to community policing, along with being a competitive department, allowed us to receive some unique awards in 2021. We finished 1st place in the Cardboard Boat Regatta’s “Heroes Cup Race" with Officer Clift at the helm. Officer Ratliff competed with other first responders in the Fort Ancient Restored Machinery Club’s “Pedal Pull,” also taking 1st Place. We also came away with the most votes in “Ohio’s 2021 First Responder Photo Challenge!” Officer Elzey was placed in the Junior High School in the fall of 2021 as their new school resource officer. When asked what his favorite part about working in the schools was he stated, “The ability to bridge the gap between students and law enforcement, and be a positive role model in the building.” We're looking forward to serving our community in 2022 and many years to come. The Hamilton Township Police Department wishes all of our residents a happy and healthy 2022! 2021 IN REVIEW Text click here to learn more about the htpd That was the first thing to come to mind when asked to recap my six and a half years as chief of HTFR. With everyone’s support and hard work, we have been able to accomplish so much in modernizing and advancing the fire department. We have been able to update, develop and implement new policies and procedures as well as identify the core values for our department. We have added 9 new full time positions and created new training programs and ways to recruit and develop both our full time and part-time personnel. In looking toward the future, we began sending our fire officers to schools to develop them in their leadership roles. Additionally, we created a new EMS Supervisor position to advance our medical program and better our service to the community. Then in 2021, we added an Asst. Chief position, and the development of our personnel exploded due to expanded training and an emphasis on fitness. Overall, we have placed an importance on developing people because with well-trained and educated personnel, morale is improved and the service provided improves. When it comes to equipment and facilities, once again, we have improved leaps and bounds. We reduced our rolling inventory, but updated an engine, two staff cars and two ambulances. We have been able to update all of our fire safety gear and improve the upkeep of this gear as well. We have updated our IT equipment as well as our communications procedures. Our medical equipment has also seen many updates as well. In 2019, we were finally able to break ground on a new fire station to house our headquarters. This modern facility was designed to hold administrative staff as well as being able to handle equipment and a 24/7 crew of up to eight firefighters. We moved in to this facility, located on S.R. 48, in mid-2020 and it is serving us well. We have also been able to complete some major updates to our second station located on S.R. 22. As of January 7, 2022, after 41 years in the fire service, I am hanging up my fire helmet and retiring. My years with Hamilton Township have been some of the most rewarding and successful of those years. However, that could not have happened if I did not have the support, counsel, and cooperation of the Hamilton Township Community, Boards of Trustees, Administrators, Staff and the wonderful men and women of Hamilton Township Fire Rescue. So, I must say it once again, THANK YOU HAMILTON TOWNSHIP! Chief Brian Reese Click here to learn more about the HTFR. Text thank you hamilton township! Text happy retirement chief reese... Thank you for 41 years of service! on the rise Text As our Township continues to grow, the need for rounding out our staffing levels has been an ongoing challenge. Last year, we made multiple hires that brought the Public Works Department closer to where we need to be in regards to team members, but additional hiring will occur in 2022 to complete our department. We replaced Service Worker II and Mechanic II positions and added a Mechanic I to assist with the high volume of vehicles our garage sees on a daily basis. Maintaining proper staffing levels allows us to serve our residents more efficiently for all of the services we offer, but is especially important for snow plowing and maintaining our roadways and parks. Every year keeps our crew on its toes, but 2021 was especially busy as we ran short staffed for 3/4 of the year. Here's a snap shot of the work we performed just from requests for service by our residents and in house personnel. This chart does not include our task detail from our day to day workload. Everyone at Hamilton Township wears multiple hats from Administration staff to Police, Fire and Public Works. Part of what makes all of our staff happy to work here is that no two days are alike. We step up and help where, how and when it is needed. It's part of what keeps morale high; knowing that we would all do for others and they would do the same for us. That being said, we rose to the challenges of a larger workload, while running short staffed. We rose to the challenges of making upgrades to our growing Fire Stations and updating our Police Administrative offices and Training room. We rose to the challenges of assisting with putting on larger Township events such as The Freedom Parade and Tree Lighting Celebration. We're happy to rise to all of the challenges ahead knowing that we're making a difference for our community. HAPPY NEW YEAR! Text public works Public Works Team Members From Left: Don Pelfrey (Road Supervisor), Kenny Hickey, (Public Works Director/Assistant Administrator), Brandon Voris, Justin Thompson, Leo Enos, John Daunt, Josh Parker (Service Workers II), Adam Nunez (Mechanic I), Ron Peek (Mechanic II), Nicole Earley (Administrative Assistant/Community Development) Text Click here to learn more about our Public Works Department Click here to check out the Economic Development webpage for updates on developments, available sites, business resources, etc. ECOnOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND ZONING 2021 zoning recap Text Text Please join us in congratulating Lindsey Gehring on her promotion to Zoning Administrator! Lindsey has worked as our Administrative Assistant since 2018 and we're thrilled to have her transition into this new role. She ensures all housing projects and developments abide by our Zoning Code to maintain the aesthetics we all love of Hamilton Township. Text Click here to learn more about our finance department Our budget is very healthy. Through fiscally conservative budgeting, we are on our 7th perfect audit. We are able to budget consistent debt reduction while including capital projects for community improvements. Text finance update Text Text Ellen Horman is our Assistant Fiscal Officer and maintains the day-to-day operations of the fiscal office. She has led us through 7 perfect audits! Text Text EVENT CORNER Hamilton Township & The Village of Maineville have created a wonderful partnership and will be hosting some community events jointly to benefit all of our residents together! Text Text Click here to see our full event calendar Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consetetur sadipscing elitr, sed diam nonumy eirmod tempor invidunt ut labore et dolore. Text want to volunteer for our events?  sign up here! Historic virginia military district It may be hard to believe but Hamilton Township was once a part of the state of Virginia. In fact in the early 1700's Virginia claimed all the land that became Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, Kentucky and West Virginia. Eventually Virginia was forced to cede those claims so new states could emerge, but were allowed to retain a section of land in Kentucky and Ohio to use for payment to soldiers from Virginia who had fought in the Revolutionary War. Military bounty land grants were first made in an area southeast of the Ohio River, in what is now Kentucky. The Virginia Military District was a surplus reserve of 4.2 million acres established in Ohio between the Little Miami River and the Scioto River, which includes Hamilton Township. The Ohio land was to be used after the land in Kentucky was exhausted. The first step for a former soldier or heir to obtain land was to secure a proper certificate of actual service and then acquire a printed warrant from the land office in Virginia specifying the quantity of land he would receive. The amount granted depended on rank and length of service. Sometimes grants were passed to children or other relatives. Ohio's first senator, Thomas Worthington, was the recipient of his guardian's grant of nearly 7,000 acres. There were also many who received grants that wanted to sell them. Quakers from Virginia and the Carolinas, who were against slavery, were happy to purchase them because they wished to settle in Ohio, which was a free state. (Be sure to read future issues of Tales of the Township to find out which Hamilton Township historical figures inherited or purchased grants.) One requirement of those settling on land in the Virginia Military District was to have a fruit orchard within two years, which may be one reason Johnny Appleseed came through the Township. Could it also be a contributing factor as to why we still have multiple orchards in the area? The land in the Virginia Military District in Ohio that was not claimed or sold was given by the federal government to the state of Ohio who gave it to the Ohio Agricultural and Mechanical College, now known as Ohio State University. A marker in Hamilton Township on Stubbs Mills Road notes the first settlement of the Virginia Military District land in Warren County was located just west of there by William Mounts in 1795. Mounts Park is named after one of the first families to settle this area. Tales of the Township f u n If you have OTHER HISTORIC facts RELATED TO the VIRGINIA MILITARY DISTRICT, THE MOUNTS FAMILY OR HOPKINSVILLE , please send them to us! email us here . Sources: http://www.virginiaplaces.org/military/virginiamilitaryreserve.html https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virginia_Military_District https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=99422 Archived photo of original dedication service, from Warren County Historical Society. Evelyn Fisher, Dorothy & Miriam Rogers, Dorothy Mounts, Virginia Moise, and Nancy Newman. All of these young ladies were descendants of William Mounts. The village of Hopkinsville at the crossroads of Hwy 48 and 22&3 is the oldest village in the township dating back to 1808. In the early days it was the center of trade for the township with three stores including a shoe store, as well as a blacksmith shop, a school, a church, and a cemetery. The first post office in the township was located here in 1825 and initially, it was here that men in the township voted and celebrated at one of the three saloons. Sometimes referred to as Hoptown, the post office and saloons are gone, as well as the school which was sold at an auction for $1,160 in 1940. In the last decade the "village" has had a revival and after 200 years it is the center of trade for the township once again. Tales of the Township Historic Mounts Station Marker f a c t Thank you to Dr. Karen Dinsmore for her contributions to 'Historic Tales of the Township.' She has spent many years with colleagues and friends researching our local history. 1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. 2. Grease a 9x13 casserole dish with approximately 2 tsp. of butter. 3. Cook the macaroni noodles according to package directions. Drain and set aside.. 4. In a large pot, melt 4 Tbsp. of butter over low heat. Add the flour, making a roux. Slowly stir in the milk and bring to a slight boil. 5. While continuing to stir the roux/milk mixture, add the salt. Add 2 Cups of the shredded cheese stirring until the cheese is melted. You will have a thick, creamy sauce. 6. Pour the drained macaroni noodles into the cheese sauce in the large pot. Stir until the noodles are completely coated. 7. Pour mixture into the greased casserole dish and sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup shredded cheese evenly on top. 8. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until the top layer of cheese is completely melted. . Ingredients Text We all know Sally's really behind this Hamilton Township staff favorite! This hearty dish is sure to warm you up on a cold winter night! employees of the year Luke Ratliff, HTPD Kenny Hickey is our Assistant Administrator and Public Works Director and has been a Hamilton Township employee for 18 years. He is a wealth of knowledge with ALL things in Hamilton Township and one of the nicest people you'll ever meet! Text 2 tsp. (approximately) + 4 Tbsp. Butter 1 lb. Macaroni Noodles 3 Tbsp. Flour 2 tsp. Salt 3 Cups Milk 2 1/2 Cups Shredded Cheddar Jack Cheese Cookin'with Kenny Congratulations to our Eric Webb, HTFR Sally's Mac-n-Cheese Directions Justin Thompson, HTPW If you need to keep the mac-n-cheese warm, a crock pot is a great option! Turn on warm, grease the lower inside of pot rather than 9x13 casserole. Follow steps 3-7, but pour into crock pot and top with cheese. Cover. The top layer of shredded cheese will melt just fine on the warm setting! Text Trunk or Treat & Pet Masquerade Text Paint The Plow Tree Lighting Celebration out & ABOUT in Text Text Tree Lighting Celebration OUT AND ABOUT in Hamilton Township? Send us your pictures to be featured in our Quarterly Newsletter. Email us here!