NEWS RELEASE

DEFIANCE COUNTY COMMISSIONERS

MONDAY, JULY 20, 2009

The Board of Defiance County Commissioners met in regular session at 8:30 a.m. on Monday, July 20, 2009 in the Conference Room in the Commissioners Office at 500 Court Street, Suite A, Defiance, Ohio 43512. Chairman James E. Harris, Jr. called the meeting to order. Also present were Commissioners Otto L. Nicely and Thomas L. Kime, Laura Howell, Administrator and Stephanie Metz, Clerk.

The Commissioners met in General Session and approved and signed various resolutions, contracts and documents. The Commissioners also reviewed the calendar of events and discussed upcoming meetings.

Representative Bruce Goodwin met with the Commissioners for a legislative update.

Karen Tubbs, Defiance County Treasurer, and Marlene Goodwin, Defiance County Auditor, met with the Commissioners for approval of notes for Bee Tree, Kinner, Carryall Tile, Peterson and Dowe Ditch Improvement Projects.

Warren Schlatter, Defiance County Engineer, met with the Commissioners for his weekly update and the bid opening for the SR 66 & Elliott Road Intersection. The following bids were received: Diversified Road & Pipe, Inc. - $723,144.30; Crestline Paving & Excavating Co., Inc. - $694,082.01; Anderzack-Pitzen Construction, Inc. - $724,000.00. The Engineer’s Estimate was $666,172.00. The Board took the bids under advisement and will award at a later date.

The highway crews will be working on township culvert replacements. Roadside grading continues on the following roads: Watson Road, Jewell Road, Banner School Road, Scott Road, The Bend Road and Blosser Road.

Greg Reinhart, Defiance County Wastewater Operations, met with the Commissioners for his monthly update. Greg informed the Board that the following repairs have been done: greased and oiled all plants and pump stations, replaced a grinder pump, changed air filters in small air pumps and Express, DMP and Breckler, replaced belts on one blower at Evansport, changed the float at EMA pump station and cleaned the floats at Express, DMP and Breckler pump stations.

Barb Rohrs, Bruce Clevenger and Teresa Johnson, OSU Extension, met with the Commissioners for an update.

Bruce provided the update for Agriculture/Natural Resources. He taught 122 local farmers and landowners about the new Average Crop Revenue Election (ACRE) Program that is part of the 2008 Farm Bill. ACRE is the new alternative to the traditional Counter Cyclical Program to manage revenue risk in the farm business. Enrollment must be completed by August 14 for the 2009 crop year. Bruce taught Safety Around Livestock to over 200 Youth that participated in a Farm Safety Day Camp at Camp Palmer. During April, May and June, more than 150 phone calls and/or personal visits were made to the county agriculture/natural resources educator requesting information on crop and livestock production, pond management, farm management and horticulture.

Defiance County Farmers Market opened in May. Markets are open in Defiance on Thursdays 3-6pm and Saturdays 9am – Noon, Sherwood Fridays 9am – Noon and Hicksville Tuesdays 1-11am.

Barb provided the update for Family and Consumer Sciences. The Family Nutrition Program presented 25 educational sessions to approximately 152 participants. This program is provided for by a $37,000 grant. Fifty-four parents attended parent enrichment programs in the last year. Twenty-six people attended the Occasional Quantity Cooking program designed for volunteers who prepare, serve or otherwise handle food at any special events—weddings, reunions, fund-raisers, etc. Seventeen families participated in the Dining with Diabetes. One of the goals of this program is to encourage participants to improve self-management skills. Three families attended the First Time Homebuyers Education classes.

Teresa provided the update for 4-H Youth Development. There are currently 598 enrolled in the Defiance County 4-H program. Tinora High School had 45 students participate in the Real Money, Real World program. It is a six week curriculum that provides a hands-on experience to give young people the opportunity to make lifestyle and budget choices similar to those of an adult. The curriculum builds awareness of the connection between education, occupation, income and financial choices. This program utilized 15 business and professional volunteers from the community in providing the real life simulation experience. There is a new 4-H Robotics Project that is designed to help young students learn the fundamentals of engineering and robotics through math, science and technology. Funding was provided by a grant from the Ohio 4-H Foundation, the Defiance County 4-H Endowment and Defiance County 4-H Teen Leaders. In May, five 4-H youth completed a four hour course on ATV Safety.

The Commissioners met with Jerry Overmier and Lynn Cladey, Beilharz Architects, and Tina Hiler, Defiance County Senior Services, to discuss the Senior Center Project.

The Commissioners attended the Northwest Ohio Commissioners & Engineers 2009 Summer Meeting at Ottawa.

The Commissioners will be holding a Public Meeting at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, July 21, 2009 at the UAW Hall for the Auglaize River Sewer Project.

Release Approved: ____________________________________________________

James E. Harris, Jr., Defiance County Commissioner