Painesville Township Community News Update

Welcome to the FIRST fully digital version of the Painesville Township Newsletter!

In an effort to reduce costs, while still providing periodic news updates to our residents, the printed version of the newsletter will be produced and mailed just two times per year instead of four. This digital version will be produced, on average, monthly and delivered to your inbox. The digital version is not only much more cost effective, it also reduces waste. This first edition will overlap the printed Spring/Summer edition that will be hitting mailboxes during the month of April, so some of what you are seeing here will be repeated in print.

The 2023 St. Patrick's Parade marched on despite the chilly temps!

This year saw a record number of businesses and organizations take part in the parade. Spectators lined Mentor Avenue from the entrance of the Fairgrounds to Hellreigel's Inn to watch the parade, and enjoy the festivities.

Mark your calendars now for 2024 - the parade will fall on St. Patrick's Day, and is sure to bring out the crowds!

This event, in addition to the 3 other major events the Township Board of Trustees host each year are only possible due to the generosity and support of our local business and community members. Without sponsorships and donations, these events and entertainment would not be possible.

This year's major parade sponsors included Sievers Security, Falvey Reality and the Falvey Family, the Celtic Nations Society of Northeastern Ohio, Key Bank, Major Waste, Ken Ganley CDJR and Compadres Mexican Restaurant.

Thank you to our major sponsors, as well as the following business for their continued support:

Lew's Reliable Heat, K. Kilfoyle Ins., Kim Caito-UBS

Zapitelli's Restaurant, John Kelleher Co., Pollutro Insurance

Zappitelli Financial, Adventure Subaru, Painesville Dental Group

From the desk of Trustee Josh Pennock:

We have three roadway improvements projects taking place throughout the Township this spring totaling nearly 1.4 million dollars. We are using a $248,000 grant from the Ohio Department of Transportation to construct sidewalks on the west side of Bowhall Road, from Madison Avenue to Dorothea Drive.

This sidewalk connects multiple residential neighborhoods to the Madison Avenue sidewalks we built in 2016, and provides access to Angelo Cicconetti Park. We know there is a desire for sidewalks, bike lanes and/or multi-use paths along other roads in the Township and are always on the look-out for funding opportunities to construct these facilities.

The second project is partially funded by an Ohio Public Works Commission (OPWC) grant we received in the amount of $285,000.

This project is reconstructing parts of Bannerstone Drive and Sandstone Drive with new concrete pavement. Through past projects, the Township has repaired concrete roadway joints on Big Rock Drive and replaced the cul-de-sac on Big Rock Drive with full-depth concrete pavement.

Concrete roadways can be difficult and costly to maintain. When feasible, we prefer to reconstruct our concrete roads with asphalt and that is exactly what we are doing in the second part of our OPWC project. We are reconstructing Wonderlust Court, Pine Meadow Court and Foxfire Drive from Bowhall Road to the intersection of Wonderlust Court and Pine Meadow Court.

The project is reconstructing stormwater catch basins, constructing new concrete curbs and building a new asphalt roadway.

Our third project is being built as a joint project with Concord Township and the Lake County Engineer’s Office. By joining forces with Concord and the County, we bid a larger asphalt paving project that resulted in better pricing for everyone involved.

As a part of this project, the following roads will have a layer of old asphalt removed, application of a reinforcing fabric and then a new layer of asphalt will be placed. Roads included in this project are South Doan Avenue, North Doan Avenue, Everett Road, Blish Avenue, Garfield Drive, and Fairfield Road from Mentor Avenue to Stratford Road. Additionally, we are constructing a small parking area for Hadden Park along Everett Road.

This $344,280 paving project is being paid with funding from the Road Levy passed in 2018. As part of this project, the County Commissioners are paying to have the Lake County Fairgrounds resurfaced.

What’s next in road construction?

We are currently preparing an OPWC funding applications for two reconstruction projects that we hope will be funded in 2024 and 2025.

Each of these projects are estimated to cost approximately $700,000 and our grant applications will ask for $300,000 for each project.

Grant funding is a great way to leverage our local tax dollars and increase the number of roads we can repair while remaining within our operating budget.

Don’t be salty.....

We are always looking for ways to reduce operating costs and stretch how we use our tax dollars. Partnering with other communities and obtaining grants as discussed above is one way we do that, but we also take a close look at day-to-day operations.

Last fall we organized a local gathering of over 60 service department workers from Painesville Township and surrounding communities to learn about best practices in winter maintenance and snow removal. Training was provided by D.W. Clounch Inc.

We also took this opportunity to recalibrate the salt spreaders on our plow trucks.

The recalibration makes sure that we apply the proper amount of salt to our roadways because more does not always mean better. This helps ensure we are good stewards of the environment and your tax dollars.

News from Service Director Bill Thompson:

Spring is Here!

Spring is upon us, and that means yard clean will begin soon. The brush, leaf and yard waste drop off area is open on Wednesday from 7:30 am until 3:00 pm, and on Saturdays from 10:00 am until 2:00 pm.

The drop off site is located at the Township Service Garage at 558 Fairport Nursery Road.

As a reminder, this service is provided to Painesville Township residents only.

Yard service contractors are not permitted.

Did you know???

On average, our service department crew uses 1,300 tons of road salt per snow season. During this past February, they only used a total of 16 tons! Overall, the mild winter greatly reduced our salt usage.

Spring Plantings.....

As you begin your spring projects and prepare your yards for summer enjoyment, please remember that newly planted trees or bushes will one day be at full growth and could create a sight distance obstruction if planted too close to the road.

Fire Department news:

Our current Fire Chief, Frank Huffman will be retiring this June, after spending 30 years in the fire service, including serving as Painesville Township’s Chief since 2017. Frank began his career as a part-time firefighter with us in 1983, and was one of the original full-time members of the department to be hired in 1990.

We wish Frank a happy and healthy retirement!

New Fire Chief announced:

After an extensive search, the Trustees are excited to announce the appointment of the new Fire Chief; Eric Burchak, who will begin his service with Painesville Township in late April. Eric brings 30 years of fire industry experience with the Cleveland Fire Department, and we are delighted to have him join the Painesville Township family.

Raised in a small town just outside of Hickory, North Carolina, and a graduate of Lakewood High School, Burchak is looking forward to returning to a close knit community with the small town feel of Painesville Township.

Currently residing on the west side of Cleveland with his wife Joan, who is a retired Cleveland Firefighter, they have already begun plans to relocate to Lake County. Eric has one son, Jarret, who is also a Cleveland Firefighter, assigned to Engine 36, in the Mt. Pleasant neighborhood.

Updates from Planning and Zoning Director Harley DeLeon:

As the warmer weather becomes more frequent I am sure we are all looking forward to spending time outside and getting started on that list of outdoor projects created over the winter.

The thought of starting those projects is likely bittersweet so we here in the zoning department strive to make our involvement in that process as easy and painless as possible.

If you have any questions about the zoning permit process for your upcoming fence, gazebo, shed, deck, pergola, swimming pool, and everything in between projects please give us a call at 440-352-1443.

Did You Know....

Part of your license plate registration fee gets returned to the Township to help maintain the roads. Since we share a common zip code with surrounding communities it’s important to make sure your address includes Painesville Township in the address line.

Take a look the next time you are renewing your plates and driver’s license to make sure it reflects Painesville Township, so the wrong community doesn’t end up with those much needed funds.