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The Washington Township Board of Trustees met in Regular Session on January 6, 2014, at 7:30 p.m. at the Washington Township Government Center, 8200 McEwen Road. President Young opened the meeting and led the Pledge of Allegiance. SWEARING -IN OF SCOTT PAULSON AND JOYCE YOUNG AS TRUSTEES AND MATT FRANKLIN AS ZONING COMMISSION MEMBER Mr. Zobrist swore in Mr. Franklin first, then Mrs. Young and Mr. Paulson. STATE OF THE TOWNSHIP WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP 2013 State of the Township Report — The Year in Review PRESENTED JANUARY 6, 2014 By Joyce Young, President Washington Township Board of Trustees Montgomery County, Ohio It is an honor and a privilege to sum up the year 2013 for Washington Township. When I asked my colleagues to summarize their impressions of the year, I received overwhelmingly positive comments. Dale Berry believes that participation in our community is truly outstanding. Fiscal Officer Tom Zobrist states that the township is in a good position. Scott Paulson concludes that we are growing with new development towards a beautiful future. You will hear echoes of their comments in my report. The year started out on a high note when the results of a periodic citizen survey indicated that residents are pleased with Township services and satisfied with the Township as a good place to live. The survey, conducted by the Wright State Center for Urban and Public Affairs, documented that seven of nine services — fire and EMS, police protection, recreation, public works, land use planning, development, administration — received satisfaction levels of 97% or above. These high marks make us resolved to continue working to improve the services that residents expect. As an example of our resolution to continue improvement, the Fire Department achieved reaccreditation through the Commission on Fire Accreditation International, representing the highest standard of excellence. It is the only accredited fire department in the Miami Valley and one of nine in Ohio. Our fire staff has aimed for continuous improvement to achieve the reaccreditation and will continue to strive for progress in all areas. The good news continued in May when voters approved two five -year levies, a 4.65 -mill Fire levy and a .7 -mill Recreation levy. The citizens who volunteered in the "Yes for Rec" and Fire Levy Campaign cheered when both levies passed by over 60% because they had worked hard to communicate how essential these levies are to our quality of life. The Rec Center levy pays about 43% of recreation expenses; and the fire levy will allow the Fire Department to keep up with the increasing volume of calls, while offsetting decreasing state and property tax revenue. 1/06/14 Pagel