Brimfield trustees weigh options after up to $800,000 overrun on new fire/admin building; Glow Fest canceled

Brimfield Township trustees held a special meeting June 20 to discuss an estimated construction overrun tied to the township's new fire-administration project and options to shore up the general fund, including temporarily reallocating Job and Economic Development (JED) revenue and reorganizing staff payroll. Trustees also voted to cancel the Glow Fest event scheduled for this summer.

The discussion centered on a worst-case estimate of about $800,000 in additional construction costs related to the new fire and administration building, officials said. Fiscal officer John Danzel told the board the $800,000 figure was a maximum estimate supplied by the township's project managers and contractors and that the final number remained under negotiation: "The original project was the $8,500,000. There was a dollar amount out there that's thrown on the table of $800,000. That's not a not a final number by any means. That number is up for negotiation with the contractor, with the architect, and with QCI," Danzel said.

Why it matters: trustees said the overrun has strained the general fund at a time when salaries and benefits account for the majority of the fund's annual budget, potentially forcing the township to hold checks or shift costs midyear if no adjustments are made. Officials and department heads said they preferred steps that avoid cutting emergency services.

What trustees and department heads discussed

- Source and size of the overrun: Danzel and staff said the $800,000 estimate includes a March pay application of about $500,000 that is part of the total. Danzel and project staff said the project has generated claims and change orders involving contractor Rycon (sometimes transcribed as RICON) and architect Moody Nolan; project oversight and documentation by QCI (a project management firm) led to additional professional fees. Danzel summarized the situation: "We do not even know the number yet from QCI, Moody Nolan, and Rycon. The max would be 800,000. We don't think it's gonna anywhere near that, but we don't even know the number for that yet." QCI's billed project-management fees were discussed in the meeting as approximately $263,559.

- Existing set-aside and cash on hand: Officials said roughly $275,000 remains from earlier set-aside funds for the project and that the March pay application (about $500,000) is part of the overrun estimate. The USDA construction/"fire admin" account and other anticipated reimbursements were discussed; trustees and staff said some funds remain tied to project accounts and to potential mediation with the architect for previously paid amounts.

- Options to meet near-term needs: Danzel presented three main options he and staff had assembled: (1) change the JED revenue distribution from the current 30/30/30/10 split (police/fire/roads/general fund) to an even 25% across those four recipients, which staff estimated would increase the general fund by about $206,000 annually (approximately $103,000 pro rata for the remainder of 2025); (2) reassign payroll costs for certain shared administrative positions from the general fund to the department budgets (staff estimated this would free roughly $287,000 on an annualized basis); or (3) eliminate or reduce specific pay lines (a deeper payroll reorganization). Trustees also discussed a fourth variant: "locking" the 2025 JED rates for police/fire/roads and diverting 2026 increases into the general fund until reserves recover.

- Department heads' reactions: Department heads said they could absorb a temporary JED redistribution if it was clearly time-limited and if alternative dedicated sources (for example the JED maintenance & improvement fund for vehicle purchases) remained available. The police chief (Roy) said he could accommodate the 25% redistribution for a limited period without staff cuts: "Not based on what I'm seeing today," he said when asked whether staffing would be affected. Fire Chief Craig Malawi cautioned that losing funds earmarked for the fire budget would be damaging if an agreed set-aside did not return: "After hearing what I heard today of not getting the $390,000 back, I think the answer is no." Road superintendent Dave said the roads division could work with a reduced JED allocation but might need to scale back some projects.

- Project management and contractor issues: Trustees and staff recounted repeated project delays, multiple Rycon project managers, disputed change orders (including masonry and roofing), and a period in which QCI was engaged to document defects and disputes to support recovery or mediation. Danzel said QCI was retained to "catch those pieces, document that" so the township could pursue corrective recovery from contractors or architects.

Board directions and next steps

Trustees did not adopt a final one-time measure at the meeting to cover the full overrun. The board directed staff to: follow up with QCI and project counsel to refine outstanding claims and the final cost estimate; prepare a separation of costs that are directly fire-related versus general-administration to clarify impacts on each fund and department budgets; and provide updated JED and TIF revenue projections (Tallmadge/Kent JED receipts and county TIF clarifications) before they consider permanent changes. Fiscal officer Danzel recommended applying the $275,000 currently held in the project's set-aside toward outstanding contractor invoices to reduce immediate pressure while negotiations continue.

Votes at a glance: - Glow Fest cancellation: Motion to cancel the Glow Fest event passed unanimously (vote recorded as Mike: Yes; Sue: Yes; Nick: Yes). Motion and second recorded during the meeting; Parks director Cassie said some park revenues (facility rentals, sponsorships, program fees) historically offset part of event costs. - Meeting schedule change: Trustees approved rescheduling the June 24 trustees meeting to Friday, June 27 at 8 a.m. and adjusting the July meeting schedule; the board announced the schedule change during the same session.

Community context and budget detail

Speakers and residents who attended raised several lines of concern. Resident Bill Anderson said pandemic-era CARES Act spending on community projects (a library building, a soccer field and parking) had contributed to the perception that federal funds might have been available for project overages; he said, "Those funds should have been used to cover the fire department cost overruns due to COVID, but they were not." Patty Harjung, a longtime resident and former township police employee, urged trustees not to reduce emergency services to cover overruns: "We need our life saving emergency services for the police department, the fire department, and the road crew. Those are the essential services for Brimfield Township that, is absolutely necessary for the well-being of our residents."

Fiscal numbers discussed at the meeting included: the $800,000 maximum overrun estimate (presented as a worst-case), the March pay application of roughly $500,000 that staff said is part of that total, roughly $275,000 remaining in a project set-aside, and QCI project-management invoices discussed at approximately $263,559. Staff said payroll and benefits account for an estimated 78% of the general fund budget (roughly 63% salaries plus 15% health insurance), and that general fund receipts represent a relatively small share of the township's total revenue mix compared with special-revenue funds tied to safety services.

What will happen next

Trustees said they will gather follow-up information, including finalized contractor/architect/ QCI figures, an itemized split of fire vs. administration project costs, and updated JED/TIF revenue projections. The board scheduled a further meeting and asked staff to return the refined estimates so trustees can decide whether to adopt a temporary redistribution of JED funds, implement payroll reassignments, seek short-term borrowing, or take other measures. Trustees and department heads repeatedly emphasized an intent to preserve emergency services while addressing the general fund shortfall.

Ending

The board adjourned after the schedule votes and invited staff and department heads to work with trustees over the next two weeks to provide the detailed financial breakdowns and revenue projections needed for the next decision. Trustees said they expected the item to return to a future meeting once QCI and the contractor-accounting issues were clearer.