HEALTH INSURANCE OPTIONS … Insurance Agent Jake Cox gives a detailed presentation of insurance options Williams County officials could take in the future.
By: Brenna White
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
publisher@thevillagereporter.com
The Williams County Commissioners held their regular meeting on July 31, 2025, at 9:33 a.m. An annual Hillside Country Living Financial meeting was held directly before at 8:00 a.m.
After starting with the Pledge of Allegiance and a roll call, all Commissioners were present, including President Terry Rummel, Scott Lirot, and Bart Westfall.
The minutes from the July 29, 2025, meeting were approved with no corrections. A minor amendment was introduced by Rummel, asking for a quick discussion on including Zoom access to all future Commissioner meetings.
An official Zoom policy is currently in the process of being drafted by the Williams County Administrator, Vond Hall. Zoom is an online platform that allows users to connect with video, audio, and chat messages.
The commissioners hope to allow the public easier access to the weekly meetings via Zoom conference. No storage of videos is proposed at this time, as audio recordings of the meetings in full can be found on their website. A resolution approving the policy is expected to follow in the upcoming meetings.
The board moved forward to approve supplemental appropriations for the Williams County Common Pleas Court, the Commissioner’s Office, Job and Family Services, the Engineer’s Office, and Hillside Country Living.
An updated list of members for the Williams County Port Authority was additionally approved. Cheryl Andres was appointed to the vacant seat previously held by Stacy Lillard. Andres is to be sworn in at the following meetings.
The commissioners signed an agreement with the United Way on behalf of the Department of Aging for grant funding.
This is for the strict purpose of supporting home-delivered meals for the seniors around the county. The Area Office on Aging approved an American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding award for the Department of Aging, as well.
Northwest Township’s contract documents and notice to proceed were signed by the Board in order to begin its Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Parking Improvements project.
Two applications were received under ORC 6137.051 for tile/ditch repair – one filed by Tim Stull and Kee Mansfield. Each application was tabled for further discussion, in hopes that the commissioners could gain further insight about the topic.
An executive session was held at 10:00 a.m. to discuss pending or imminent court action with Attorney Thad Boggs. This concerns solar issues, as requested by Commissioner Rummel. No action was taken at this time.
After returning to open session at 10:30 a.m., the board received a GIS and ESRI maintenance update from Todd Roth, Williams County Engineer, John Waterston, and Brian Fritsch.
Roth explained the Engineer’s ongoing effort to address the mapping issue in Williams County and the ongoing progress made.
By working closely with the Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI), the Engineer’s office is slowly but surely addressing the mapping inaccuracies in the area. The county has been improving this system for many years, with Fritsch noting the effort dates back to 2002.
Roth addressed the commissioners and said, “We’ve been doing the mapping, and we need to enhance the mapping!”
He strongly advised against introducing a third-party system, as they would likely take the information the county has already gathered and charge an exorbitant price for it.
Roth asked anyone with questions regarding the ESRI system and mapping to contact the Engineer’s Office directly.
The engineer’s office sends all updated information collected every six months to ESRI, with the most recent being taken on July 22, 2025.
It takes around a month and a half for the applications to be correctly introduced to the global map, which is sent back to the county for final approval afterwards. The next update is expected to be collected in January 2026.
It was noted that systems such as Google and Apple Maps are considered more of an “entertainment app,” as said by Engineer Roth, and do not always display accurate data. However, by improving the accuracy of the ESRI system, the entertainment systems will follow in the future.
Williams County is not solely responsible for the mapping corrections and strongly relies on its surrounding villages and townships to provide the necessary information.
By charging a yearly fee to use the programs needed for mapping, the county provides instructional teaching to the administrators and volunteers at hand.
They stated that a number of villages have been contacted and are directly working with the County to update their information, including Edgerton, West Unity, and Montpelier.
Once all correct information has been collected, such as municipal park locations, gas stations, and even roadway signs, a more accurate budget can be produced annually for repairs in Williams County.
At 11:00 a.m., a health insurance evaluation with Jake Cox was held with the commissioners. He addressed a wide variety of options and routes Williams County could take with its official health insurance; however, no action was taken.
The current contract with Anthem Insurance has another two years yet to go before changes can be made. With no further business on the agenda, the meeting adjourned at 12:02 p.m.