Multiple possible locations for an upcoming Multi-Agency Radio Communication System (MARCS) Tower were discussed at the weekly Wednesday meeting of the Highland County Board of Commissioners.

Commissioner Terry Britton said that it’s been “a chore” to try and find a location in the Marshall Township area, which is where the tower is most needed.

“The community is just dead against it,” he said. “The township trustees and, you know, I went to a meeting there a month or so ago and it just wasn’t good.”

Britton said the adversity of finding a Marshall Township location is what led the county to Concord Township, which was willing to give them property “from day one.”

However, Angela Canepa, director of First Responder Communications Initiatives, said the “brains” of the operation looked at the location and were “concerned” that it wouldn’t give the kind of coverage the county wants. She said that’s because it would fill in some of the needed gaps but include redundant coverage “a lot of places.”

Following a discussion between the commissioners and multiple visitors, three locations were brought forward as possible places that Canepa and others from MARCS will visit and assess — Long Lick Hill, S.R. 753 south of S.R. 506 before S.R. 41, and then a location south of Rocky Fork Lake.

Canepa said the group would drive around the areas and see if anything looks viable for the locations in terms of road access, electricity and other aspects. She also said that the group can try and make coverage maps for any of the possible locations to see if they will bring service to the needed and under served county areas.

She said the location search was “by far” the hardest part, and that once it is finished it’s pretty “smooth sailing.”

Commissioner Dave Daniels asked for the group to possibly list their first, second and third choices of the three locations.

“When we’re going to all this trouble to build a tower and find frequencies, we want them (the towers) to do the best that we can possibly do because we don’t know how many more of these towers we can build,” Bob Bill, a frequency coordinator, said. “There’s always a challenge of resources, money, you know, to build the tower and then frequencies and things like that.”

Bill said the challenge for the county is finding locations that have high ground but that also allow access and can have electricity run to them.

In other news, the commissioners officially announced Randy Sanders as the new Highland County sheriff on an emergency basis.

“I’ve been working toward it, know I have a bunch of questions, but I’m sure you’ll start hearing those next week,” Sanders said.

According to a proclamation, Sanders’ position as sheriff will last until the Republican Central Committee was able to fill the vacancy, with the appointment to not last more than 45 days from its start. Current sheriff Donnie Barrera announced last week that he is retiring May 31, before the official end of his term on Jan. 5, 2025.

Barrera had previously announced that he would not seek re-election. The two candidates for the position — Sanders and Brandon Stratton — faced off in the March primary election with Sanders winning handily.

Daniels also reported on the meeting the commissioners had in Columbus with the Ohio Department of Taxation, Ohio Department of Education, Ohio Department of Development and the Ohio Power Siting Board, which focused on multiple issues the county has had with solar development and pilot program problems.

Daniels said one of his takeaways was that the board of commissioners made a case that there should be changes in either the law or administrative procedure, which he said the government entities “were more than willing” to consider. He said some of those things included when a pilot program becomes active, school funding issues to do with property coming out of Current Agricultural Use Value (CAUV) and going into public utilities tax or the pilot.

However, Daniels also said that it’s important to remember that the changes coming would be difficult to implement on the projects that have already started in the county, but that there are some projects just starting that the changes might “hopefully” effect.

The commissioners announced the hiring of Christine Alexander as the Highland County sewer billing clerk. Daniels said the board has been communicating with the county auditor who said that since the county moved to monthly billing for its sewer services, that has become a full-time position. He said the county and the auditor’s office was originally splitting the cost of an employee, but that changes coming have meant a full-time employee is needed.

Alex Butler, Highland County auditor, reported that he expects the 2022 audit to be released “within the next two or three weeks” for public viewing. He said that tax bills for the second half of the year would go out in late June or early July and will be due on Friday, Aug. 2, 2024.

The board of commissioners approved one authorization to execute, that being a Juvenile Court Funding Application Renewal for the Ohio Department of Youth Services Subsidy Grant.

The board of commissioners also approved a liquor license renewal at the 1st Stop locations in both Allensburg and Rainsboro.

Reach Jacob Clary at 937-402-2570.