NEWS RELEASE

DEFIANCE COUNTY COMMISSIONERS

MONDAY, MARCH 26, 2007

The Board of Defiance County Commissioners met in regular session on Monday, March 26, 2007, at 8:30 a.m., in the Conference Room of the Defiance County Commissioners, 500 Court Street, Defiance, OH 43512. Commissioner Otto L. Nicely called the meeting to order. Also present were Commissioner James E. Harris, Jr., Becky Wagner, County Administrator, and Joanne Goerlitz, Deputy Clerk.

General Session – The Commissioners were presented with various resolutions and documents for approval. The Commissioners reviewed agenda items, discussed upcoming meetings, and reviewed and updated the calendar of events.

Russ Herman, Defiance County Assistant Prosecutor, met briefly with the Commissioners. Mr. Herman updated the Board of documents pending in the Prosecutor's office.

Warren Schlatter, County Engineer, met with the Commissioners for the Bid opening of DEF-TR 106-2.80 Casebeer-Miller Road Bridge. Bid proposals were received at the appointed time of 10:00 a.m. EST and are as follows: R.G. Zachrich Construction, Inc., Defiance, OH - $200,484.41. The Engineer's estimate is $212,923.00. The Commissioners accepted the Bid Proposal for further consideration and will be awarded at a later date.

Warren informed the Commissioners that he continues working on the right-of-way for various utilities on Elliott Road between Carpenter and Domersville Rd.

The Commissioners held the Second Building Inspections Public Hearing. The Board of Commissioners wishes to establish the Defiance County Building District to include Defiance, Noble, Richland, and Tiffin Townships to enforce the Ohio State Building Codes for the purpose of providing uniform standards and requirements for the erection, construction, repair, alteration, and maintenance on non-residential buildings. The County of Defiance seeks to obtain the authority to enforce the provisions of the Ohio State Building Codes through certification by the Ohio Board of Building Standards Pursuant to Chapter 3781 of the Ohio Revised Code. The Ohio Board of Building Standards will be holding a public hearing on March 30, 2007 in Reynoldsburg, OH to review Defiance County's Application for the Certification of a Building Department.

The Commissioners visited the Historic Homes of Defiance office to view their accomplishments in the past seven years. Under the direction of the Ohio Historical Preservation office, the Historic Homes of Defiance has been working to document the history of Defiance County focusing mainly on the Historic Homes and the people who lived in them. The Historic Homes of Defiance has completed an inventory of well over 600 homes and are presently concentrating on the history of the downtown buildings.

Release Approved: ____________________________________________________

Otto L. Nicely, Defiance County Commissioner