GREENVILLE – The Darke County Board of Commissioners met on Thursday afternoon to discuss the appointment of a new Judge of Common Pleas, the airport, and a letter of support for Eldora Speedway.
Commissioners Matt Aultman, Marshall Combs, and Larry Holmes were present.
The board approved Resolution (R-32-2024). This is for the appointment of a new Judge of Common Pleas. Previous Judge of Common Pleas member John Marchal Jr.’s term expired 12/31/2023. Attorney Nicole L. Pohlman of Garbig, Schmidt, and Pohlman, LLC, has agreed to serve Dakre County on the Public Defender Commission. This is a four-year term that expires on 12/31/2027.
“I think we should thank John Marchal Jr for the years he served in that role,” Commissioner Larry Holmes said. “He’s certainly been instrumental in getting us through a few points over the years. I wanna thank him for his efforts there.”
The board then approved a Letter of Termination to Crawford Murphy and Tilly Inc. This terminates them from the standard agreement for Professional Services for the Airport Fuel Farm.
“We are going to bid it out again,” Commissioner Matt Aultman said. “So, to start over fresh, we’re canceling everything and starting over from scratch, and we’ll figure it out from there. That way, we’ve got a clean slate as we move things forward.”
The board approved an Awarding of RFQ for Airport Engineering for the Darke County Airport. After receiving a statement of qualifications, the board awarded the contract to Butler, Fairman, and Seufert of Indianapolis.
The board also approved an agreement with Butler Fairman and Seufert Inc. This is for architectural engineering and planning consultant services for airport grant projects from January 16, 2024, until January 16, 2027.
“BFS really impressed me with their knowledge of regional airports and business planning; they’re heavily involved in the airports they engineer and consult for,” Commissioner Marshall Combs said. “I was really impressed with their background.”
The board then approved a notice to professional engineering consultants to develop a Master Plan for the Darke County Airport. This is requesting a statement of qualifications and other supporting information to provide planning services for the airport. The criteria for evaluation include qualifications of the firm, qualifications and experience of key individuals, ability to complete all aspects of the projects, recent similar experience at comparable airports, quality of previous projects, familiarity with the airport and proposed projects, and references. The board will review the recommendations and choose a consultant firm. Consultants must submit three paper copies of their response and one PDF to the board by February 22, 2024, at 1 pm.
Contact Scott Nass, Airport Manager, at snaas@co.darke.oh.us for questions and more information.
The board also approved a letter of support for updating and accommodating public safety for Eldora Speedway. This letter is being sent to Matt Huffman and Angela King to ask for funding from the state to improve safety.
“This is for an under-the-road tunnel to get people across 118, which is a state highway,” Commissioner Aultman said. “You get a lot of people that travel that road that is not from around here, and they don’t know when things are happening, so it’s just a public safety item we are asking for funding from the state on.”
The Darke County Board of Commissioners holds a regular session every Tuesday and Thursday at 1:30 pm at 520 South Broadway, Greenville, Ohio 45331. For more information, contact the commissioners’ office at 937-547-7370.
