Year’s end is busy time for township

riser at the Country Meadows housing area

In other business, township zoning inspector Ronald Carpenter reported issuing a permit for a 32x40 accessory building in the 2300 block of Stiving Road and a separate permit for a 12x28 accessory building in the 2600 block of East Smiley Avenue.

Carpenter also told trustees that a proposal for a business envisioned for the southwest side of Myers Road and State Route 39 no longer was being pursued for the site. The proposal had been discussed at meetings of the trustees earlier this fall.

Also at the Dec. 15 meeting, trustees approved bonuses before taxes of $700 for Stumbo and $350 each for Carpenter and road department employee Sam Sauder.

Trustees’ Chairman Greg Vogt later described them as Christmas bonuses for good work during the year and reported that such bonuses typically are awarded annually at this time of the year.

Officials also noted that trustees plan to gather at 5 p.m. Dec. 31 in the township garage for their 2020 closeout meeting to wrap up any remaining business involving bill-paying for December.

“I think everything in the township is going well,” Chairman Vogt said as the meeting neared its end.

Check the Shelby Daily Globe for more from the trustees’ meeting, including an update on the project to light up the flag pole outside the township complex at Taylortown and Plymouthspringmill roads.

COLUMBUSRICHLAND County remained the only ‘purple’ county in the State of Ohio, Governor Mike Dewine reported during his regular briefing on Thursday afternoon.

With the updated Advisory System map, Dewine explained Richland County remained purple. In addition, Miami County joined the watch list. Wyandot County also became red for the first time ever.

“We are seeing counties move to Watch List and then purple when we are seeing worsening trends in cases and healthcare indicators, and then a return to red when these all plateau at a very critical level,” Dewine said.

Richland County is ranked eighth in the state with highest occurrences of COVID-19.

“Every county is at least three times what the CDC considers high incidence. Counties that are in the top 20 are nine to 13 times higher than what the CDC considers high incidence,” Dewine said.

In a press release from Richland Public Health it stated Richland County met five of the seven indicators this week but remains at the purple level due to two week trends. The five indicators met were for New Cases per Capita (1,096.13 cases per 100,000 population, down from 1,134.92), New Case Increase (74.86 seven day average), Noncongregate Cases (36.51 seven day average), Hospital Admissions (3.86 seven day average), ICU Bed Occupancy (83.07 seven day average). Emergency Department Visits (30.14 seven day average) and Outpatient Hospital Visits (61.43 seven day average) were not met.

On average over Wednesday and Thursday, 8,411 new COVID-19 cases were reported in Ohio.

On Wednesday, Shelby had its fifth COVID-19 death.

In a statement from Mayor Steven Schag on Thursday, The Shelby City Health Department reported COVID19 activity over the past 24 hours with a combined total of 21 new cases, 14 new cases from the general population and 7 new cases from a long-term care