Tuscarawas County commissioners approve routine appropriations, water‑project amendment and flood‑plain permit

The Tuscarawas County Board of Commissioners met in regular session on June 29, 2026. Commissioner Greg Ress presided; Commissioner Kristin Zemis was recorded as absent and Commissioner Mitch Pace voted in favor of all motions reported in the minutes.

The board approved minutes from the June 24 meeting and several routine financial motions. Among the supplemental appropriations approved was a $25,000 allocation for paving materials related to the Wilkshire Hills wastewater treatment plant and smaller transfers to cover worker's compensation and insurance costs in Water & Sewer accounts. The board recorded the vote: Kristin Zemis, absent; Greg Ress, yes; Mitch Pace, yes.

Commissioner Mitch Pace moved to approve multiple interdepartmental transfers, including $20,415.20 to transfer budget responsibility to the Clerk of Courts for jury duties and associated payroll lines. Wendy Jones, Clerk of Courts, explained that Common Pleas Court will assume jury responsibilities and said, "I volunteered my trained jury clerk to go to the courts and in order to do this, I must pay out the budgeted funds I had for her for the rest of year." The motion carried with Zemis absent.

The board granted a flood‑plain development permit to INR Ohio, LLC, to allow temporary surface waterlines to transport fresh water from the Tuscarawas River to well sites in Guernsey County (Clay‑Walsh Township) as submitted by Floodplain Coordinator Lee Carl Finley. The permit was approved by voice vote with Commissioner Zemis absent.

In a separate action, the board designated The Huntington National Bank to continue as public depository for the Tuscarawas County Metropolitan Sewer District for the period Aug. 19, 2026 through Aug. 18, 2031, and authorized the Sanitary Engineer/Director to execute the required deposit agreement. Special Counsel Steven A. Anderson reviewed the resolution as to form before the board voted in favor.

The board also approved Amendment No. 1 to the Owner‑Engineer Agreement with Engineering Associates, Inc. for the Wilkshire Hills Emergency Water Transmission Line. The amendment shifts remaining Preliminary Engineering Report funds to technical peer review, assigns preparation of the Preliminary Engineering Report to the Tuscarawas County Metropolitan Sewer District, incorporates required federal grant compliance provisions, and updates liability and indemnification language. The amendment did not increase the total contract amount, which remains $17,000.

Commissioner Pace moved and Commissioner Ress seconded an addendum extending the board's Letter of Intent to purchase commercial real estate (dated March 11, 2026) until July 15, 2026; Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Kristine Beard approved the addendum as to form. The board authorized a legal advertisement soliciting sealed bids for sodium chloride (rock salt) for county roads, with bids to be opened July 21, 2026 and the notice to be published July 6, 2026. The county reserved the right to reject any or all bids.

The meeting record shows the board approved payment of listed bills and accepted dedication of Russell Drive from Jeffrey E. and Rebecca A. Zeigler to Lawrence Township for use as a cul‑de‑sac. The record lists Rhonda Jordan as clerk attesting to the minutes.

Several items in the minutes noted external reviewers or counsel: Steven A. Anderson, Special Counsel, reviewed multiple resolutions; Kristine Beard, Assistant Prosecuting Attorney, approved the addendum as to form; and Floodplain Coordinator Lee Carl Finley was the submitting official for the INR Ohio permit.

The board's recorded votes on the motions in the minutes were uniformly in favor by the two present commissioners, with Commissioner Kristin Zemis recorded as absent on each vote. The minutes do not record further debate on the motions beyond the brief explanation by Wendy Jones regarding the jury clerk.