ST. CLAIRSVILLE — Township trustees from across Belmont County gathered at the fairgrounds Wednesday for an annual meeting sponsored by the Belmont County Engineer’s Office.

Engineer Terry Lively joined Pultney Township Trustee Frank Shaffer to welcome the more than 50 guests that included a wide variety of officials. Lively also updated the crowd on the wor his staff is doing, including a large chip and seal project on county and township roads, 17 miles of paving, bridge repairs and replacements and “slip projects everywhere.”

Looking forward, he said the Belmont County Transportation Improvement District is planning two intersection improvement projects — one at U.S. 40 and County Road 10 at the foot of Blaine Hill, where eastbound trucks often are unable to make a left turn; and another at Ohio 147 and County Road 26 in Bethesda, commonly called “the four-way stop,” where Ohio 147 takes a jog to the left around a large red pylon located on private property. He said the TID would like to acquire the property, remove the pylon and widen the road.

“We’re happy to make a difference,” he said of the engineer’s staff.

Commissioner J.P. Dutton also spoke to the crowd, touching on partnerships with the townships, particularly in the areas of water and sewage service. And Brian May spoke on behalf of the Planning Commission, describing the work it is doing to update a variety of codes and standards across the county. Once completed, these will govern the construction of new developments and subdivisions. May said these requirements have note been updated since the 1960s.

Among matters the commission is addressing are the width of streets, the size of water mains, how close developments can be to natural gas well pads, minimum paving standards, minimum lot sizes and required setbacks.

“We’re trying to protect the end consumer,” he said, noting the draft documents are expected to be completed and approved by the planning and county commissions this year.

The audience also heard from Tim Berelsman, CEO of Ohio GIG/Belmont County GIG, which is working to install underground network fiber in many areas where high-speed broadband service is not available. He said the project started at Belmont College, where existing fiber allowed it to connect to the wider world. From there, service was run to the fairgrounds, a subdivision known as Country Lake Estates and then to a second “HUT” in Barnesville, where electronic components of the system are housed. Next, he said they will expand to the southeastern portion of the county.

According to Berelsman, by placing the lines underground, they will be able to survive rodents, wind and electronic interference from storms. He said they can easily be maintained for 20-40 years.

He said employees are trained “to be good neighbors” and to “treat customers’ property as their own.” He stressed that all employees wear badges for easy identification, and those badges have QR codes that lead to the Ohio GIG website when scanned. There, residents can find information and make a request for service.

Following the presentations, each elected official in attendance had a chance to address the crowd.

Chief Deputy James Zusack, on hand representing Sheriff David Lucas, reminded attendees that the department still has a litter control officer on staff, working in conjunction with the JB Green Team. He said townships can utilize those services.

Probate/Juvenile Judge Al Davies talked about the community service work juveniles in the Concentrated Conduct Adjustment Program perform at many locations across the county. He said townships could request assistance through CCAP. He also said the annual Staying Clean drug-free club car show is set for Sept. 9 and has already raised nearly $40,000 this year.

Coroner Amanda Fisher thanked the townships for maintaining their roads, noting that she often uses those roads in areas where GPS and cell service is not available when responding to calls about deaths. She also offered information on grant funding that is available to help townships cover the cost of burials for indigent residents who die.

Auditor Cindi Henry reminded township officials to contact her office about their levy funds.

Prosecutor Kevin Flanagan announced that a key member of his staff, Dave Liberati, is retiring. The office will host a party in his honor from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. June 30, and Flanagan said everyone is invited. He also said Jacon Manning will assume Liberati’s duties.

Recorder Jason Garczyk invited anyone who needs assistance with records to visit his office. He said the staff is now working on indexing deeds from the 1970s, ’80s and ’90s.

Treasurer Katherine Kelich discussed the Belmont County Land Reutilization Corp., of which she is chairperson. She invited trustees to identify dilapidated properties in their townships and present them to the land bank for possible demolition.