Fire Chief Justin Saunders, left, presents Thomas Lee with the certificate promoting him to lieutenant on the fire department. Lee is an Air Force veteran who has been on the Phillipsburg Fire Department since 2019 and is also a member of the Brookville Fire Department.
Photos Kay Dawson | Register-Herald
Fire Chief Justin Saunders, left, presents Chris Rohwer with the certificate promoting him to lieutenant on the fire department. Rohwer has more than 20 years of firefighting/EMS experience on various departments around the Miami Valley and is also Fire Chief of Pitsburg.
PHILLIPSBURG — Two firefighters were promoted to lieutenant at the July 18 meeting of Phillipsburg Village Council.
Thomas (T. R.) Lee and Christopher Rohwer were both sworn in as lieutenants after serving on the department in lower ranks.
Fire Chief Justin Saunders also asked council to approve the hiring of Joshua Henry as a part-time firefighter/paramedic.
Anne Shaber, one of the two appointed in June to fill council vacancies, learned she needs to move from the area and had already submitted her resignation.
Three people applied for this and another council vacancy. Steve Booker, Heather Craft and Hope Hoard all indicated their desire to serve.
Village council made no decision at this meeting, as Councilman Brandon Myers said he would have to verify their voting registration at the Board of Elections first.
He also explained the procedure should they want to run for the seats that are up for election this year, as the appointments are only for the rest of the year.
Crossing the intersection at Main and State streets will be a bit easier. Street Commissioner Wendell Harleman said the WALK sign had become out of timing and has been corrected.
But driving may remain difficult in spots. Harleman presented estimates for resurfacing Jesse Haines Way, the alley giving access to the municipal building or the service garage.
Asphalt would cost $42,000, and the gravel resurfacing estimate was $28,000. He also had an estimate of $6,000 for filling potholes on Airport Loop Road.
Councilman Chris Steiner considered these estimates too high. He urged Harleman to look into using asphalt milling — ground asphalt — for Jesse Haines Way and protested that $6,000 for Loop Road would be too much “if the potholes were the size of this room!”
Harleman pointed out these were only one estimate apiece and he was going to ask for more.
Mayor Rebecca Ford asked why the village had to pay anything for Jesse Haines Way, since the company that resurfaced it a year or two ago had said the work should last for five years. She also pointed out that the Loop Road potholes were caused by trash trucks which were supposed to pay for the repairs. Harleman said he had not been able to contact the company about Jesse Haines Way and was planning to contact the trash company’s insurance company.
The old fire engine has left the village, having been sold online for $5,000, and council authorized Saunders to sell the surplus medic unit. The village has an agreement with Brookville if a second medic unit is needed on occasion.
Booker asked Mark Wysong, zoning officer and police chief, if something could be done about an alley near his home that was constantly blocked by a property owner’s parking cars and other vehicles he was repairing in the alley.
Wysong replied that this was one of the property owners who would be receiving certified letters about violations early next week.
The next regular meeting of Phillipsburg council will be at 7 p.m. on Aug. 15, in the municipal building at 10868 Brookville Phillipsburg Rd.
