A long-time member of the Springfield Township Fire Department has retired and his replacement has been selected.
At the March 19 meeting, the trustees accepted with regret the retirement resignation of Ronald Bogedain, effective March 22.
“It has been my pleasure to serve the community and residents of Springfield Township for the past 25 years,” Mr. Bogedain wrote. “The experiences that I have learned and the highly trained and dedicated coworkers I have worked with will always be remembered and cherished.”
He added, “I could not have imagined spending my career in fire and EMS anywhere else.” Acting Fire Chief Jonathan Ziehr presented the firefighter/ paramedic with a framed resolution approved by the trustees, commending him for his service.
He noted that Mr. Bogedain has served on life squad his entire tenure and saved countless lives. He also delivered three babies during his time at the township and “was a great mentor for paramedic students in the EMS field.”
Following the presentation, the trustees approved a recommendation by Acting Chief Ziehr to move Michael Henry from part time to full time with the department as a firefighter/paramedic.
“He will be replacing Ron and begin work on March 21,” the acting chief said.
In addition, the trustees approved hiring seven firefighters on a part-time contingent basis.
Five are being hired as firefighter/paramedics at an hourly wage of $27.24. They are David Bowen, Brian Dotson, Cyrus Otto, Kyle Yeager and Alex Rupp. Hired as firefighter/ EMTs at an hourly rate of $25.01 are Christopher Harrison and Kevin Myles.
The acting fire chief also presented the department statistics for February.
Last month, there were 349 calls for service in the areas served by the township, which, in addition to Springfield, includes the Villages of Holland and Harding, Spencer and Swanton townships.
Of those, 237 were in Springfield Township, followed by Holland, 54; Spencer, 22; Swanton, nine and Harding, five.
The department also provided mutual aid to Sylvania Township and Sylvania, seven each; Maumee, four; Monclova Township, two, and Richfield Township and Toledo, one apiece.
Station 51 on South Mc-Cord Road fielded the most calls, 222; followed by Station 53, Garden and Holloway roads, 69, and Station 56 on Frankfort Road, 65.
Seven site plans were reviewed for Target, 1465 East Mall Drive, remodel; Sheetz, 6633 Dorr Street, new construction; KC Nails, 7341 Airport Highway, new business; Kotts Crossing, Dorr Street, new business; Harvest Garden, 8060 Airport Highway, remodel; Hillbilly Depot, 2701 South Eber Road, new business, and Brohl Chiropractic, 7015 Spring Meadows Drive, remodel.
Three fire investigations were conducted last month–two vehicle and a structure fire. The structure fire at 7415 Nightingale Drive occurred on a back porch and was ruled accidental. Damage was estimated at $1,000, but because it was contained early it saved $500,000 in potential damage, Acting Chief Ziehr said.
The vehicles occurred on the Ohio Turnpike and Dorr Street. In both cases, damages were estimated at $4,500 and the fires began in the engine compartment. The cause was mechanical.
Other Business
In other business, the trustees:
•Awarded the 2024 road improvement project which includes the Apple Blossom subdivision to Gerken Paving for $817,175.
•Authorized Perfect Sweep to conduct two street sweeps of township roads this year at a cost of $7,900.
•Contracted with Aqualawn LLC to perform five fertilization applications at each park, the administration building and fire stations at a cost of $20,910.
•Agreed to post temporary no parking signs along both sides of Angola from King to Albon roads from April 6 to 8 in anticipation of heavy traffic during the solar eclipse.
•Reviewed the community service officer’s report for February, which addressed current activity in the township, complaints and plans for the upcoming eclipse and eclipse related events.
•Received notification from the Lucas County prosecutor’s office that they had sent a certified letter to Baymont by Wyndham, 1214 Corporate Drive, notifying them their property is in violation of township zoning codes and if the owner fails to meet certain conditions, the hotel would be closed down.
•Paid bills from March 6 to 19 totaling $163,346, including a payment of $71,108 to Northwest Ohio Advanced Energy for energy efficiency improvements and $40,935 to Holland for the village’s portion of the revenue sharing agreement.
The trustees also approved electronic payments of $395,027, which includes the biweekly payroll of $283,504.
•Declared as surplus a number of fire department items including a 1998 International fire engine and agreed to sell them on Govdeals. The engine has been out of service since January, the acting fire chief said.
•Entered into executive session to consider the appointment, dismissal, discipline, demotion and compensation of a public employee, or investigation of complaints against a public employee, but took no action afterward.
The next trustees meeting will be at 5 p.m., Tuesday, April 2, in the township meeting hall, 7617 Angola Road, and is open to the public.
