MADISON TOWNSHIP ─ After six months of waiting, Madison Township has a new fire department leader.
Township Trustees Chairman Jim Houser swore in Kenneth Justus as the new fire chief at trustees’ Monday evening meeting. Justus’ family and former colleagues at Mantua-Shalersville Fire Department and Mantua Police Department also joined the ceremony.
The position has been open since former Fire Chief Ron Luttrell resigned in September to lead the Norwalk Fire Department. Houser said Justus stood head and shoulders above the other three candidates for his qualifications and experience. The township is happy to have him.
Justus, 47, was a captain of the Mantua-Shalersville Fire Department, where he worked for 25 years. During his career as a firefighter, he was also a part-time lieutenant and K9 officer with Mantua Police Department for many years.
Justus said he grew up in the Mantua and Hiram area and has always been interested in firefighting. He became a cadet firefighter at age 15, starting to take basic training and getting knowledge of the work.
In high school he was a dispatcher for the Village of Hiram and interacted with many police officers and firefighters. He said the Hiram police chief encouraged him to be a first responder. That is why he wanted to be a police officer and firefighter at the same time after graduation.
In Justus’ opinion, fire service is the best form of government. He said he enjoys taking care of people and making a difference.
“I feel like people call us when they’re at their worst, and it’s up to us to set the tone for how that interaction is going to be. We can handle it in a lot of different ways,” he said.
While having more than 30 years of firefighting experience, Justus continued his education. He is enrolled in Eastern Gateway Community College, pursuing a degree in fire science. He also studies leadership and has been reading books and joining classes to learn to be a better leader ─ just what Madison Township was looking for.
Justus said he has good feelings about the new job. He looks forward to working with his new colleagues and enabling them to grow.
In other business, trustees previously found the township was charged about $20,000 more than the bid amount in its 2020 resurfacing program. The contractor Shelly & Sands Inc. sent the trustees a letter on Monday after being asked for an explanation.
The company said it was awarded the project at a total of $162,555 and invoiced the township $180,287.80 “based on the actual quantities performed in the field.” It resulted in the actual contract going over by $17,732.80.
There were nine extra catch basins or manholes that were not accounted for in the bid, the company said. That work added $4,500 to the project. More asphalt was placed in roads because of the extra road width, potholes, low spots and other additional issues.
Trustee Catherine Swank said Shelly & Sands did not notify trustees of any change of order. She also read the company’s bid proposal says it had visited the paving locations and become familiar with the conditions.
Houser said the board will need to further discuss the issue and perhaps take it the county prosecutor’s office.
Additionally, the trustees on Monday opened four bids for a chip-and-seal road resurfacing project that will be executed on 13 roads. Allied Construction became the apparent low bidder with $105,873.71. The company is based in Chillicothe.
The trustees also signed a cooperative agreement with Springfield Township at the meeting. Trustee Dan Fletcher said Madison shares Leppo Road with Springfield. The road is part of the resurfacing project. Springfield has agreed to pay half of the construction cost for the road.
