Summit County Council Splits Bath Township into Two Districts

If all goes as planned, Bath Township will be represented by two Summit County Council representatives in 2013.

Council voted 9-2 to move the township from District 1, represented by Nick Kostandaras, to districts 4 and 5, represented by Tamela Lee (4) and Frank Communale (5).

Bath Township officials challenge the legality of passing the legislation as an emergency, which prevents them from trying to overturn the legislation by referendum.

The new districts would join Bath Township with districts covering Cuyahoga Falls, Akron, Fairlawn and Copley Township (see attached map).

Many Bath Township residents and Township officials  the plan. Trustees have said it will join Bath with cities, which have different priorities. Residents who spoke said they preferred one representative to talk to rather than two.

Bath Township Trustees unanimously passed a resolution before the meeting that Township Administrator William Snow read into the county council record. Snow cited a provision in the Summit Charter that gives townships preference in redistricting. Snow said the issue shouldn't be passed on emergency, which cut the times the change was debated in public from two to three.

Trustees Becky Corbett, Elaina Goodrich and Fiscal Officer Sharon Troike said the plan was drawn and decided without input from the township.

"To say we were blind-sided by this proposal is an understatement," Troike told Council." 

Trustee Corbett said the township was only made aware of the plan for redistricting, which began in January, after the new boundaries were drawn into current boundaries last month. Trustees have invited council members to their work sessions to find another solution, Corbett said, and only one of 11 members has attended.

Summit County District 2 Councilman John Schmidt, a former deputy director of the county Board of Elections, is the main author of the new plan. Schmidt said other townships have more than one representative for state representative, state senate and U.S. Congress.

"And by the way," Schmidt said, "if there's a problem in Bath we will all get in our cars to solve the problem. This (redistricting) is not an unimagined thing."

By its own rules, county council can only pass legislation on an emergency basis that pertains to the health, welfare and safety of the county.

Bath Township attorney Bob Konstand said he doesn't think the passage meets the requirements of emergency rules.

Assistant Summit County Prosecutor Mary Ann Kovach -- council's legal advisor -- said county council cannot dismiss its own rules, but has the right to say when an issue up for passage meets the emergency passage requirements.

Of the 41 issues discussed Monday, all 41 were presented as emergency legislation. One issue was placed on time and held for discussion.

Summit County and Bath Township authorities have investigated a made to a council member last week that police said stems from the redistricting debate. As of Aug. 11 Summit Council has hired a Summit County Sheriff's deputy to guard the council offices.