Published June 06, 2009 12:16 am - Ashtabula County residents who can’t afford to stay in a suite at the Lodge and Conference Center at Geneva-on-the-Lake may want to do the next best thing — buy the furniture from it.
Lodge to put furniture on online auction site
By CARL E. FEATHER - Staff Writer - cfeather@starbeacon.com
Star Beacon
JEFFERSON — Ashtabula County residents who can’t afford to stay in a suite at the Lodge and Conference Center at Geneva-on-the-Lake may want to do the next best thing — buy the furniture from it.
The lodge is renovating its suites this spring, and the old furniture went on the county’s online auction block Friday afternoon.
Commissioners on Thursday passed a resolution that sent five television armoires, four dressers, five coffee tables, four table lamps, 10 headboards and 10 side sofa tables to the auction site, ashtabulacountyohioauctions.com.
Each item has an opening bid of $10. A number of the pieces had received bids within hours of being placed on the site Friday afternoon. Photos of the items are online.
The lodge is renovating the suites with money from an account funded with 4 percent of the lodge’s gross revenue. The renovations will include a new flat-screen television and larger beds in each room. Lodge management has said the renovations are necessary to attract more reunions and other businesses that need the space provided by guest suites.
Also on Thursday, commissioners passed a resolution that should save the county $30,000 in elevator service expense. County Administrator Janet Discher said the service contracts for the courthouse complex, Western County Court and Soil and Water building were expiring and she re-bid them rather than renew existing contracts.
The contracts cost $2,200 monthly under the old arrangement; by combining them the cost was lowered to $1,368 per month. The agreement covers three years and caps annual increases at 4 percent. Discher says the result will be a savings of more than $30,000 over the term.
In other action:
n Commissioners approved an agreement with Geauga County for its share of the Community Development Block Grant Neighborhood Stabilization Program money. Geauga’s share will not exceed $440,000 to be used to demolish/land bank 17 residential units and develop two residential units.
n A similar agreement was approved for the City of Ashtabula, which will get up to $642,000 to demolish/land bank 55 residential units in the city.
n Commissioners approved a contract with Russell Standard Corporation of Union City, Pa., for 320,000 gallons of asphalt emulsion to be used by the Ashtabula County Engineers Highway Department. Cost is not to exceed $513,120.
n A contract with Arms Trucking Company, East Claridon, was approved for furnishing limestone for the highway department. The contract is not to exceed $317,925.
Commissioner Daniel Claypool pointed out that while Arms is located in Geauga County, it employs workers from Ashtabula County.
n Commissioners also stayed local by purchasing 5,000 gallons of yellow traffic paint and 1,210 gallons of white traffic paint through the Saybrook Township Sherwin-Williams Co. store. The contract is not to exceed $51,891.40.
n Contract amendments for providing health-related transportation services with Country Neighbor and City Taxicab & Transfer Company/Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS), were also approved. The ODJFS amendment includes $153,500 for non-emergency transportation and $37,500 for pregnancy-related transportation services. The funding is 100-percent pass-through money from the ODJFS. There has been a significant increase in trips since the initial contract allocation, necessitating the amendment.