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Brown County commissioners accept $66,000 parks donation, award service contracts and move to rescind livestreaming plan
Summary
At their March 11, 2026 meeting, the Brown County Board of Commissioners approved payment of $293,560.66 in bills, accepted a $66,000 donation earmarked for parks from the Stivers' Estate and authorized transfers and contracts; commissioners also moved to rescind a prior livestreaming motion and appointed a 2026 apiary inspector.
Brown County commissioners on March 11, 2026 approved routine bills, accepted a $66,000 donation for parks and took multiple procurement and personnel actions, minutes of the meeting show.
The Board of County Commissioners — Barry L. Woodruff, Gordon Ellis and President Tony Applegate — approved a set of department bills and expenditures totaling $293,560.66. Gordon Ellis moved to approve the bills; Mr. Woodruff seconded and the minutes record a unanimous roll-call vote in favor.
At the request of County Administrator Sarah Beath, the board approved a supplemental appropriation and an associated transfer to move $66,000 received from the Stivers' Estate into the Parks and Recreation account (fund 2026-1000-40547). Mr. Woodruff moved the appropriation; Mr. Ellis seconded the transfer motion. The appropriation and transfer are recorded in the minutes as actions prompted by the administrator; where a roll-call tally is recorded it shows the commissioners voting yea.
The board also awarded two service contracts. Mr. Woodruff moved to award the lawn-services contract to T & M Mowing of Georgetown, Ohio; Mr. Ellis seconded and the motion is recorded as passing on roll-call vote. Mr. Ellis moved to award the pest-control contract to Scherzinger Termite and Pest Control of Cincinnati, Ohio; Mr. Woodruff seconded and that motion is recorded as passing.
Separately, Mr. Woodruff moved to rescind the board's Feb. 25, 2026 motion to begin live-streaming meetings on or before March 18, 2026; Mr. Applegate seconded. The minutes record the motion and second but do not include a roll-call tally for that specific rescission in the available segments.
The board recessed the meeting at 9:34 a.m. and reconvened at 10:00 a.m.; the minutes record the recess vote as Woodruff yea, Ellis nay and Applegate yea. The meeting concluded after the board appointed Robin Sizemore, with the Ohio Department of Agriculture, as the county's 2026 apiary inspector. The appointment notes a 2026 budget appropriation of $5,000 for the position and specifies compensation of $25 per hour plus mileage at $0.725 per mile; Mr. Woodruff moved the appointment and Mr. Ellis seconded.
Votes at a glance - Approval of minutes: Motion moved by Barry L. Woodruff; seconded by Gordon Ellis; roll-call recorded in part (minutes indicate approval). - Approval of bills and expenditures ($293,560.66): Moved by Gordon Ellis; seconded by Barry L. Woodruff; recorded roll-call yeas. - Supplemental appropriation/transfer of $66,000 (Stivers' Estate) into parks fund: Moved by Barry L. Woodruff (appropriation); transfer moved by Gordon Ellis; roll-call recorded where indicated. - Award lawn-services contract to T & M Mowing: Moved by Barry L. Woodruff; seconded by Gordon Ellis; roll-call recorded as yea. - Award pest-control contract to Scherzinger Termite and Pest Control: Moved by Gordon Ellis; seconded by Barry L. Woodruff; roll-call recorded as yea. - Motion to rescind livestreaming motion (Feb. 25): Moved by Barry L. Woodruff; seconded by Tony Applegate; minutes do not show a roll-call tally for the rescission in the provided segments. - Appointment of 2026 apiary inspector (Robin Sizemore): Moved by Barry L. Woodruff; seconded by Gordon Ellis; minutes note budget appropriation and pay rate.
Why it matters: The donation and transfer direct $66,000 into parks and recreation, affecting local programming and maintenance decisions; the rescission motion signals a change in the board's approach to meeting transparency; contract awards set the vendors that will service county buildings.
The minutes also include brief administrative notes: Commissioner Applegate attended the Village of Georgetown ACG Project Update on March 10; the commissioners met with Jeremy Davis and Russ Sharp of 1011 Technology to discuss county IT services; and they reviewed the February 2026 monthly transport report from the Brown County Sheriff's Office. The minutes carry an annotation “Approval: March 16, 2026.”
