By Amanda Ensinger
Staff Writer
Franklin Township is unloading some property they have accumulated in an effort to bring more funds into the area. At a recent meeting, the board of trustees approved the sale of several properties.
Realtor Laura Esterline gave an update to the board about the sale of properties the township currently possesses due to unpaid taxes. Among these properties was the sale of 1439 Little Avenue and the parcel at 867 Hart Road.
The township reduced the price for the home on Little Avenue and accepted an offer of $34,900 and accepted an offer for $32,000 for the parcel on Hart Road.
Also, at the meeting, the board discussed the need for more security at township hall.
“I would recommend we have better security in our building,” said Bryon Smith, police chief for Franklin Township. “When someone leaves, we have to replace keys. If we have a digital locking system, it will be easier to deal with security when we have turnover.”
Trustee John Fleshman said he recommended some sort of badge system where employees can scan a badge to access the building.
Smith, as well as Franklin Township Road Superintendent Jim Stevens agreed to examine this more and present options to the board in an upcoming meeting.
In other news, the board discussed offering township employees Hepatitis A and B vaccines.
“We can’t force employees to get this, but we can offer it,” Smith said. “With the opioid crisis and the recent homeless outbreak, this will better protect our employees.”
Smith said that employees who waive the vaccine would have to sign a waiver so if they would contract these diseases, they cannot site their work as the cause.
The township plans to partner with Mt. Carmel Hospital and setup booths to give employees the vaccines in the coming weeks.
The trustees also gave an update on the logo students at Franklin Heights have been designing for the township.
Using the new township tagline, “Franklin Township, past, present and future,” the students were challenged with creating a logo that embody this theme.
“The students have sent us several versions of a logo, but it still isn’t where we need it to be,” Fleshman said. “We have given them direction on what we would like to see, but they are not delivering what we need.”
The trustees agree to hire a professional to create a logo for the township and thanked the students for their time.
