Welcome to Suffield Township

News Release from the Stark County Engineer:

Pontius Road in Lake Township and Suffield Township will be closed between Congress Lake Road and Duquette Avenue for three (3) days beginning on Tuesday, June 13, 2017 for road reconstruction.  There will be no through traffic during this time.  This is a road re-build project with the Stark and Portage County Engineer's Offices.  Neither Suffield, nor Lake Township will pay for any of the cost, as the counties will pay for the entire project.

And incidentally, Chagrin Valley Paving will begin work on State Route 43 on Monday June 12th.  Work in Suffield is taking place from 7:00 AM until 7:00 PM.  There will be lane closures, but traffic will be maintained.

As trustee meetings around Portage County go, Suffield's are generally one of the better attended.  Typically about a dozen locals show up to listen to the wheels of local government turn here in Suffield.  Due to some scheduling conflicts by several board members, the regular meeting had been moved from next Tuesday, back to tonight. Perhaps that played into the smaller than usual crowd.  But regardless, the trustees met and talked and gave their individual reports. 

Tom Calcei said that the Fire Department is doing well and that the Memorial Day Parade was a huge success.  He also mentioned that someone had tried to steal a trailer from his driveway.  This took place in broad daylight at 1:00 PM.  The thieves were in a medium sized SUV that was dark in color and had light colored interior.  Two males were involved.  Calcei suggested residents be on the watch for suspicious activity and to call the Portage County Sheriff (297-5100) when spotting this activity.

Jeff Eldreth reported that the Road Department had been busy putting in several driveway culverts, mowing and preparing for patching roads.  He also mentioned that the State of Ohio was quick to cut down some tall weeds which obstructed vision on Swartz Road at State Route 43, after he had advised them of the problem.  He also said work is under way on the repaving projects along Portage Line Road, Pontius Road and State Route 43. 

Dave Vartenuk noted that the Zoning Commission was proceeding with the new 20-year land use plan, and that there was nothing new to report on the saga at 1560 Carriage House Drive.  The County prosecutor had told the township that this property would be offered at Sheriff's Sale, but so far the sale date has not been set.

Some discussion was had on revenue that affect the township's budget.  Over the past decade some of the funds that the township had once counted on have been reduced or eliminated.  The estate tax was eliminated completely.  This income varied from year to year, but Tom Calcei estimated that the township lost somewhere between $25,000 and $60,000 per year by losing the estate tax alone.  When the estate tax was still available to townships, the budget allowed for about $240,000 in general spending, so losing that revenue was quite a hit.  Suffield now relies on about $170,000 in unencumbered funds each year. The Local Government Funds, which are monies that the State of Ohio provides to cities, villages, townships and counties was been reduced over the last decade as well.  For example, in 2017 these funds for Portage County totaled $3,732,533.   Suffield and 16 other Portage County townships each received $29,487, while Brimfield, because they had a police department, received $33,966. 

Tom Calcei had attended a meeting of the Portage County Office of the Budget Commission at which interested parties discussed how to divide the Local Government Funds for the next ten year cycle.  At tonight's meeting, Calcei was appointed by the Suffield trustees to represent the township in further discussions.  Calcei said he is hoping the townships will come to an agreement on a formula that uses criteria, such as road mileage and population, to divide the money more equitably.  This ten year plan must be adopted by the end of the year. 

The next trustee meeting is Tuesday June 27th at 8:00 PM.  The Zoning Commission meets on Wednesday June 14th at 7:00 PM.  Both meetings are in the Administration Building.   

Huge Crowd Witnesses Parade

1925 Ford Model "T" Roadster

Suffield Lady Sluggers

(See more photos of Parade in the General Photos folder, pages 18-22)

The Annual Memorial Day Parade kicked off at 2:00 PM.    Local legend Terry Ginn, along with Steve Jones and Stan Piatt, did the announcing this year.  This year's Grand Marshal was 46-year Suffield resident Jim Trout, president of the Acme Fresh Market Stores.  Trout was a long-time president of the Suffield Jaycees, which later became the Suffield League.  Once again the parade was sponsored by the Suffield League.  

This year's Grand Marshal Jim Trout has been a Suffield Resident for 46 years and is a 1975 graduate of Field High School.  He and his wife Debbie have two children, Jennifer and Jeffery, who both attended Suffield Elementary and also graduated from Field High School.  Jim believes that Suffield is the best community anywhere to raise a family.   Jim is currently the President of Acme Fresh Market stores and has 44 years’ service which started with him packing groceries at age 16 at the Ellet store.   Jim is a past President of the Suffield Jaycees, coached Suffield Baseball for 12 years and is a member of St. Joseph Parish.  Jim loves golf and spending time with his four grandchildren Madalyn, Landon, Ella, and Cooper.   He and his wife Debbie also support our community with three college scholarships yearly for Field High School graduating seniors funded through the Acme Scholarship Fund.  Oddly enough, his next door neighbor Jack Evans was last years Grand Marshal.

On Monday, prior to the parade, the Suffield Lions Club and Boy Scout Troop #267 teamed up to present the 21st Annual Pancake Breakfast at the historical Town Hall.  The Suffield Township Historical Society sold hot dogs and pop from about 1:00 PM until after the parade.

Important to everyone is the critical supply of blood.  On Tuesday May 30th, the Suffield Township Fire Department is hosting the American Red Cross's Blood Drive at the Fire House Community Room from 1:00 PM until 6:00 PM.

And something new this year is an event on Friday June 2nd.  The Suffield Lions Club is presenting the family movie "The Jungle Book" in an outdoor showing at 8:30 PM at the Lions Park, which is located next to the Suffield Elementary School.  This was planned for last fall, but weather caused a cancelation.  This year, if rain spoils the evening, the movie will still be shown, but at the Town Hall.  You are encouraged to bring a chair, blanket and your whole family to enjoy the evening.  Refreshments will be provided.  Any questions, please call Dan Kuntzman at 699-6856.

The Portage County Township Association meets quarterly to allow members and associates to dine, network with other county officials, listen to noteworthy speakers and occasionally hear some news, both good and bad.  For the Suffield Township trustees, of which all three were in attendance Saturday evening, heard Portage County Engineer Micheal Marozzi announce that three roads in the township would be paved this summer.

Mishler Road, from Waterloo Road to the south township limits will be paved, thanks in part a grant from the Ohio Public Works Commission.  Grant money in the amount of $271,000 is expected to be released on July 1st, and work on Mishler Road is expected to commence shortly thereafter.  The county will match the grant money with another $271,000.  This $542,000 project will mark the first time this road has been paved since 1996, according to project engineer Mike Collins.  Township trustees have often been asked when the road would be paved, but were forced to defer the complaints to the County Engineer's Office, as Mishler Road is one of several roads in the township that is maintained by the county road department.  Collins said that the grant money from the Ohio Public Works Commission is money that was once distributed and known as "Issue 2" money.

Also on the paving schedule is Portage Line Road from U.S. Route 224 to the south township limits.  This road to jointly maintained by the Summit County Engineer and the Portage County Engineer.  Summit County will oversee the project.  Collins said that the new pavement will be a cross between regular asphalt and a process similar to chip & seal.  Pontius Road is also a joint project between the Portage County Engineer and the Stark County Engineer.  This road will be resurfaced from Congress Lake Road to the east township limits.  The Stark County Engineer will be the project leader.  No township funds will be required for any of these three projects.  All are expected to be completed by the end of summer.

The PCTA dinner was held in the main garage of the County Engineer's Office, where "Mickey" Marozzi has annually hosted it in May it many years.  In his remarks to the attendees, Marozzi said that the ability to repave roads is getting tougher as his office maintains 370 miles of roadway, and as costs have increased, his operating budget has not increased at the same rate.  His office also is in charge of maintaining 85 bridges, as well as the signage, mowing, patching of roadways and snow removal on those 370 miles of roadway.

Also speaking at the PCTA dinner was Mathew DeTemple, Executive Director of the Ohio Township Association, who talked mostly on legislative matters.  His assessment was that the Ohio legislature would keep their funding of townships in the new state budget at the same level as last year.  Chris Gilmore, President of the Portage County Regional Airport Board of Trustees, spoke on the importance of the airport and its future.  The Portage County Regional Airport is located along State Route 44 in Shalersville Township.

Advertise yourself, your business or where you work by sending us your business card.  We will put it in the section above on the title bar that is entitled "Business Cards".  There is no cost to you, and the card will remain there until you ask that it be taken down, or when you ask us to replace an old card with a new, more up-to-date card.  You can e-mail the card to us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or snail mail it to Jeff Childers, 229 Waterloo Road, Suffield, Ohio 44260. 

First Energy will be conducting their annual Vegetation Management Aerial Patrol, beginning May 22nd through June 30th.  This is a daytime operation where the power company will be flying over various transmission lines to assess the effectiveness of last year's herbicide applications.  The helicopter will generally be flying at a low level and at a speed of about 35-40 MPH and will occasionally circle around for a closer inspection of the lines and ground below.  The helicopter that is being used is black and gray, with a tail number N321AW.  First Energy spokesperson Dana Heffner said that the energy company could not narrow down the dates that the helicopter will actually be conducting their survey in Suffield.

Eleven people turned out on Tuesday evening to watch the Suffield Township Board of Trustees conduct business.  Trustee Jeff Eldreth motioned to award road materials contracts to H. Luli Construction Company for applied liquid asphalts, to Shelly Materials for limestone, to Central Allied for gravel, to Tallmadge Asphalt and Central Allied for asphalt and Arms Trucking for slag.  The motion carried unanimously .  He also reported that the Road Department was almost done with this year's crack sealing.  Eldreth said that the county is going to pave Mishler Road, Portage Line Road and part of Pontius Road this summer.  He said that the State of Ohio was moving forward with repaving of all of State Route 43 through Suffield and Brimfield, at a cost of $2,055,000.  This also will be done over the next several months.

Tom Calcei said that the fire truck that was wrecked last week when responding to a call would be out of service for about 30-45 days according to Fire Chief Bob Rasnick.  Calcei said that in the meantime, the insurance company has provided Suffield with a rental fire truck.  Calcei motioned to pay $1,200 for a street light at the intersection of Martin Road and Garner Drive.  The issue passed unanimously.  The street light will cost the township an additional $10.54 per month in electrical costs.

Trustee chairman Dave Vartenuk said that First Energy would be having a helicopter flying throughout the township to check power lines.  This will be happening at various times over the next six weeks.  He also mentioned that the Portage County Health Department is going to be placing mosquito traps in various locations in the county, including some in Suffield Township.  These canisters, which are about the size of a trashcan, are designed to catch mosquitoes in hopes learning if the Zika virus or West Nile virus is present in Portage County.  Each trap will have warning signs posted.

Some discussion was had on the property at 1560 Carriage House Drive.  This property is supposedly going to be up for "Sheriff's Sale" in the next several months.  Tom Calcei suggested that the township somehow warn potential buyers of the extensive work necessary to bring the house up to current building code standards.  It was suggested that persons interested in purchasing the property should contact Adam Bey, the zoning inspector, for pertinent information.

The trustees also changed the date of their next meeting.  The regularly scheduled meeting for Tuesday June 13th has been changed to Thursday June 8th at 8:00 PM.  The Zoning Commission will meet on Wednesday June 14th at 7:00 PM.  According to Zoning Inspector Adam Bey, there will be a Board of Zoning Appeals meeting concerning an accessory building, but no date has been set.

It was good to see everyone's good friend Ed Vincent back at the trustee meeting.