Colene Conley resigns as York Township trustee

YORK TWP. — The York Township trustees accepted Trustee Colene Conley's resignation during a special meeting Tuesday. Conley was a trustee for the township from 1990 to 2018 and then became a trustee again in 2022. She said the gap in her serving as a trustee occurred when she moved out of York, and she has since moved back to the township. "I was always for the public (and) always for the people," Conley said. "It was not for myself. The thing of it is to help these people." She works for St. Martin of Tours Catholic Church as a marriage counselor, and that has been taking up a lot of her time, she said. As a result, she decided to resign from her position as trustee. "I'm going to miss everybody," Conley said. "Everybody's been great here." During the meeting, the remaining trustees asked if anyone in the audience would like to fill Conley's position. Todd Zieja was the only person during the meeting who expressed interest. He said he has a master's degree in public administration and has worked in law enforcement for 28 years. From 2018 to 2022, Zieja served as a York Township trustee. He was one of five candidates to run for the two open trustee positions in the November 2021 election, and Conley and current Trustee Richard Monroe won the seats. "I support the township," Zieja said. "I think we have great people. We have great residents, and I think we have more to do." Trustee William Pavlick made a motion to appoint Zieja as trustee, but Monroe did not second the motion. Monroe said he wanted to wait a little longer to appoint someone, so other people in the township have the chance to apply. "We owe the township an opportunity for anyone else that wants to run," he said. There will be a special meeting on Aug. 10 at 6:30 p.m. where the trustees will hear the statements and qualifications from interested candidates. The trustees have 30 days to appoint someone, Fiscal Officer Peggy Russell said. If the choice has still not been made, then a judge can make the appointment. The appointment for the position will last until the end of the year, Pavlick said. Therefore, people who would like to fill Conley's seat after this year must file with the Medina County Board of Elections by Aug. 9 to be put on the November ballot. Contact reporter Madisyn Woodring at (330) 721-4049 or mwoodring@medina-gazette.com.