Leaf Thursday, December 17, 2020 Vol. 27 No. 50 • Chardon, Ohio www.geaugamapleleaf.com $1.00
A New Year, Geauga Elected Officials, Deputies Gather for Swearing-In
JOHN KARLOVEC/KMG
Several Geauga County elected officials and sheriff’s deputies gathered in Chardon Municipal Court Judge Terri Stupica’s courtroom Tuesday afternoon for a swearing-in ceremony. Sheriff Scott Hildenbrand and Coroner John Urbancic are starting their second terms in 2021 while Engineer Joe Cattell and Prosecutor Jim Flaiz are beginning their third terms in office. After taking the oath of office, Hildenbrand turned and promptly swore in numerous deputies, a ceremony required at the start of each new term. Absent were county commissioners Ralph Spidalieri and Tim Lennon.
Grendell Rumored to Have COVID-19 Rep. John Patterson Shares Diagnosis, Hospitalization By Amy Patterson amy@geaugamapleleaf.com
Multiple reports have circulated among county officials in recent days indicating Geauga County Juvenile Probate Court Judge Tim Grendell is suspected of having contracted the novel coronavirus. If true, Grendell would be the first county-level elected official to be diagnosed with COVID-19. On Dec. 15, the Geauga County Maple Leaf emailed Grendell, as well as his wife, state Rep. Diane Grendell, asking them to comment on the rumors swirling around the county. As of press time, neither had responded to the email or to a subsequent voicemail left with Diane. Several sources have described See COVID • Page 4
Berkshire Dream Coming True By Ann Wishart ann@geaugamapleleaf.com
When Chris Heasley with ICON Construction gave an update Dec. 14 on the progress of Berkshire Schools’ K-12 school being built, he told the board of education the concrete floor of the elementary wing had been poured and the walls were up. “As long as the weather cooperates with us, we’re moving right along,” he said. Heasley could be considered a master of understatement. A tour of the school being built on 5 acres on a hillside is nothing, but extraordinary. Berkshire Schools Superintendent John Stoddard — tasked with the project from the ground up since taking the post in September of 2017 — hikes from his office just north of the Geauga County Fairgrounds to the construction site adjacent to Kent State University – Geauga once or twice a week to enjoy the activity and the progress. “Every day is more exciting,” he said during the recent tour as a crane lowered several tons of steel I-beam into place on the second
ANN WISHART/KMG
Cranes move steel girders into position at the construction site of the K-12 Berkshire School. Work commenced early in 2020 and is progressing at a good pace, said Berkshire Schools Superintendent John Stoddard.
floor of one wing. The school, expected to cost about $51 million, seemed to have work crews every few feet. The convex concrete stage base was finished and curing on a sunny Dec. 11. Men were plumbing a future restroom. A dump truck full of dirt waited patiently on the ground floor and a team on high lifts worked on steel girders. The worksite had ankle-deep
mud, piles of dirt and snow drifts that were slowly melting from the previous week’s blizzard. The immense structure sets into a significant hillside, so the bottom, or ground floor, faces south and backs into the hill. Most of the concrete floor of the first level is in place and many walls are built. That includes the elementary See Berkshire • Page 5
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