C o n t i n u i n g To P r o u d l y S e r v e C a r r o l l C o u n t y S i n c e 1 8 3 1 $1.00
Thursday, November 14, 2019
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911 Committee agrees to updates By NANCY SCHAAR FPS Correspondent
FPS Photo / Nancy Schaar
Members of the Ashton Preservation Association board (standing from left) Rose Seck, Ellen Finnicum and Elaine Painting and (seated) Curt Adams were thrilled to see the final product of the weight room at the new Carrollton Field House. The Ashton Association donated the final $110,000 needed to outfit the weight training room with the latest in physical fitness equipment for Carrollton students.
Carrollton Schools dedicates its new field house on campus By NANCY SCHAAR FPS Correspondent A dedication was held Wednesday, Nov. 6 to officially open the new field house for Carrollton schools. The field house is located on the campus of the new high school and middle school on Scio Road (SR332). It is adjacent to the football stadium. Construction began last November
and it was projected to be completed by the end of May 2019. The 23,000 square foot facility is state of the art and ready for students. It contains a gymnasium with rubberized flooring, two locker rooms for football teams, a wrestling room, and a weight training room. The building will be used for training and practice of volleyball, both boy’s and girl’s basketball, softball, will have baseball batting cages and includes junior and senior high locker rooms. Included is space
for classrooms and physical education classes “We are proud of this legacy in our community and school,” continued Robinson. The estimated $3 million project did run past the expected date of opening due to the unusual weather we had in the spring and summer.
See FIELD, PG. B2
The 911 Technical Advisory Committee met last week and heard updates regarding the Next Gen project for the county. Committee President Bob Wirkner reported that the six pilot counties that have completed the work for the Next Gen project can work together to receive the Carbyne texting program. Carbyne is a public safety technology company that has developed a call handling ecosystem and delivers advanced IP-enabled communication. All available data is brought into one emergency response system. This system will enable 911 calls to provide the exact location of any incident, provide video streaming and conversational functions. Wirkner said with a simple click of the mouse, the 911 dispatchers can use any smart phone to immediately view where the incident is located, see the live video that the cell phone owner is seeing and immediately dispatch emergency services that are needed. It will even be able to locate people who are in buildings. Each county will have to pay about $60,000 each, up front, for the new technology. A grant can then be applied for and each county will receive all but $10,000 back. A lengthy discussion was held regarding the proper authorization of ordering a life flight for an emergency in the county. Committee members learned that a life flight usually costs upwards of $35,000. According to Ken Joseph most insurance coverage only pays for a small portion of the cost such as $5,000. And the injured person is left with the responsibility to pay the balance. One factor that needs weighed before calling for a life flight, according to long time firefighter and department chief Jack Swinehart is the fact that many times emergency personnel are at the sight. Swinehart said that many times the emergency crews could load and transport the critically injured person to the hospital in the same amount of time it would take for a life flight to arrive. And then life flight would still need to evaluate, load, and take the injured to a hospital. The decision has to be made by those on site what will get the injured the
medical attention that is needed in the least amount of time, according to Swinehart. Wirkner stated that the actual call is to be made from the 911 dispatch center for life flight but they are relying on the recommendation of the fire department and emergency technicians at the scene. The life flight that responds may be from several origins. The response frequently is dependent on the weather and if the unit has safe flying conditions and which unit is available. 911 Coordinator Sergeant Cheryl Keyser reported that there is a need for cell phones for dispatchers to use. Keyser explained that during a recent loss of communications at the 911 center in Columbiana County, personal cell phones were used as an option to establish communication. “This is not good. What if there is a subpoena issued for a dispatcher’s private phone that was used for communications?” questioned Keyser. Following further discussion, the committee approved the purchase of cellular phone service for dispatcher’s use. Wirkner informed members that the county sheriff is the person who directs the day to day operation of the PSAP (Public Safety Answering Points). Wirkner was recently notified that their Technical Advisory Committee was lacking definitions that must be included in the plan. A definition section had been provided by Wirkner and Keyser and received approval by the committee for inclusion in the presented committee plan. Included in those definitions are duties of the committee, county commissioners, the sheriff, township and municipalities notifications. The final topic for discussion was the expected election of officers for 2020. The committee reviewed the wording for who is responsible for seats available on the committee and who is eligible to be appointed president of the committee. There was some disagreement as to whether the president must be a fire chief or just a member of the Fire Chief ’s Association. Member Ralph Castellucci said he thought the chair only has to be a member of the committee and said that the Ohio Revised Code does not specify he must be a current chief. The nominations for officers were tabled until the next meeting in February.
Filing deadlines are set for 2020 elections FPS Photo / Nancy Schaar
The Honor Guard fired a three-volley salute in honor of veterans Monday, Nov. 11, at Westview Cemetery. The Honor Guard members are (from left) Roger Barto, Larry Tasker, Doug Graham, Rick Summers, Jack Stoneman, Tom Smith and Bethany Drysdale.
Veterans recognized for their duty, honor and service to our country By NANCY SCHAAR FPS Correspondent The 11th hour of the 11th day of November will always be set aside to honor all veterans of the United States who have served their country. Veterans, residents and the fifth-grade class of Carrollton Elementary met at Westview Cemetery Monday to honor all veterans who have served. The welcome was given by Veterans of Foreign War Quartermaster Jim Newbold as he stated that Veterans Day is when we celebrate and honor all veterans and Memorial Day is when we
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honor those who have passed. Newbold gave a special welcome to 96 year old Carl Miller. Miller served in World War II and fought at the Battle of the Bulge. “We all signed on the bottom line. We all put our lives on the line for our country,” said Newbold. Following an invocation by Chaplain Tom Barnett, there was a sweet reverent amen from the students of the fifth grade class. The guest speaker for the day was Carroll County Commissioner Robert Wirkner. Wirkner served his country in the Navy in Iraq and served on a special investigation team through the Department of Defense. “Military Service is a way of life
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and once you have served, your life is changed forever in ways that only those that have served can truly understand. Not all veterans served in a wartime environment but they shared the military way of life,” stated Wirkner. Wirkner said that General MacArthur spoke at his retirement about three words. They were duty, honor and country. “Every veteran swore an oath which is legally binding, however duty runs far deeper than just a legal obligation of obedience and service,” said Wirkner. He explained that it includes moral commitments, loyalty and faithfulness,
See VETERANS, PG. A2
obits pg. A4
Since the 2019 election is over – political hopefuls are now concentrating on the 2020 elections – especially the early filing deadline of Dec. 18 for the March primary election in Ohio. Nine Carroll County offices are expiring at the end of 2020 and will be on the March 17 primary election ballot. The early primary is being held early in Ohio due to the Presidential races. Following is a list of county offices “up for grabs”, along with the current salaries provided by the Carroll County Auditor’s office: • Judge of the Court of Common Pleas Probate and Juvenile Division – (term commencing Feb. 9, 2021) – current salary is $152,811; • County Commissioner (term commencing Jan. 2, 2021), $54,939; • County Commissioner (term commencing Jan. 3, 2021) - $54,939; • Prosecuting Attorney (term commencing Jan. 4, 2021) $131,046; • Clerk of Courts of Common Pleas (term commencing Jan. 4, 2021) $62,865; • Sheriff (term commencing Jan. 4, 2021) $74,923; • County Recorder (term commencing Jan. 4, 2021) $53,396; • County Treasurer (term commencing Sept. 6, 2021) $55,880; • County Engineer (term commencing Jan. 4, 2021) $105,565; • County Coroner (term commencing Jan. 4, 2021) $34,768.
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State Offices • Justice of the Ohio Supreme Court (term commencing Jan. 1, 2021); • State Senator (30th District term commencing Jan. 1, 2021); • State Representative (95th District term commencing Jan. 1, 2021); • Court of Appeals (7th District term commencing Feb. 9, 2021); • Court of Appeals (7th District term commencing Feb. 10, 2021); Federal Offices • Representative to U. S. Congress (6th District term commencing Jan. 3, 2021); • President (term commencing Jan. 20, 2021). Persons interested in obtaining a petition for any of the county offices should contact the Carroll County Board of Elections located on the ground level of the Carroll County Courthouse in Carrollton. Office hours are 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Cost for filing a petition, which requires 50 valid registered voter signatures, is $80.
sports pg. B1