GOSHEN TOWNSHIP- Trustees hired a records retention specialist to help with the disposal of old records at their regular meeting Monday night.

The trustees hired Bob Schultz of Robert Schultz Public Administration Consultants to organize the disposal of old township records for $95 per hour, not to exceed $8,000. Schultz will manage the sorting of old records, recording of disposed records with the Ohio Historical Society, setting of the record retention schedule and training of department heads for the retention.

"The mandates set by the state are unbelievable," said trustee Rob Spencer. "We've paid enough fines in the last few months, we don't another one. I know the cost is steep, but...the old saying goes, 'pay now, or pay later.'"

In other news, the trustees approved the purchase of fuel for the police department from Southwest Fuel for no more than $1.41 per gallon. The company will provide a tank to store the fuel at the administration building, but the Agland Co-op tank will remain at the building for road department diesel.

The trustees also approved the contracts for the Safe Communities and OVI Task Force programs and their participating local law enforcement agencies, and accepted the resignations of police officers Bryan Schwartz, Christopher Avers and Dominic Zinghinni.

Damascus Fire Chief John Bricker warned the public of the dangers of wood burners, citing three calls for homes totally lost to fire and a fourth one for which the department provided assistance, all within the month.

The next meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. Dec. 8 at the administration building.

Kevin Howell can be reached at khowell@salemnews.net