ASHLAND — The Ashland County Board of Health heard public comment about the proposed 2026 license fee schedule for food service operations and retail food establishments at its regular meeting Tuesday evening.
At the public hearing, Kevin Reidy, a representative of the Savannah-Crestview Lions Club, said the nonprofit service organization helped fund the installation of a commercial-grade kitchen in the Savannah Town Hall building.
Reidy said this was to benefit the village, but also so the Lions Club could offer free and priced meals. The Lions Club already hosts monthly free lunches and pancake breakfasts seven times a year.
Offering free meals, even with advertising that attendees will be asked to make donations, does not require licensure from the health department; however, charging for meals does require licensure.
For the last two years, the Lions Club has paid that fee, but Reidy said the club cannot afford to pay for the license with the proposed increase.
“We’re reasonable in understanding that you have to adjust your pricing. Because of the nature of our business as a 501c4 volunteer service organization, charitable nonprofit, we just ask for your consideration of a second rate that would be for organizations such as the Savannah-Crestview Lions,” Reidy told the board.
The regular meeting included a second reading of the proposed fees, which are:
| Commercial Risk Level | Current local fee | Proposed local fee | Maximum allowed fee by Ohio Department of Health |
| < 25,000 square feet (small) | |||
| C1 | $125 | $205 | $207.08 |
| C2 | $140 | $230 | $233.58 |
| C3 | $265 | $445 | $448.74 |
| C4 | $335 | $565 | $569.57 |
| > 25,000 square feet (large) | |||
| C1 | $180 | $300 | $300.35 |
| C2 | $190 | $315 | $316.25 |
| C3 | $650 | $1,125 | $1,127.07 |
| C4 | $690 | $1,190 | $1,194.91 |
| Mobile: High risk | $164 | $110 | $111.68 |
| Mobile: Low risk | $82 | $55 | $55.84 |
| Temporary | $125 | $125 | $126.15 |
| Vending | $20.77 | $19.57 (includes 3 cent refund 2025) | $19.57 |
Those figures represent local fees only, food service operations and retail food establishments will still have to pay state fees as well.
“Everything that we do with setting fees is prescribed by law,” Health Commissioner Vickie Taylor said.
Environmental Health Assistant Director Kimberly Wayman told Reidy she had been researching alternative fee options for the Lions Club, as he had approached health department staff about his stance prior to the meeting.
Wayman said she found two possible solutions that could reduce the licensure cost for the Savannah-Crestview Lions Club, and similar organizations.
- The health department could implement a noncommercial temporary food service licensure, which would be 50% of the cost of a regular food license fee. That fee is determined by the establishment’s size and commercial risk level.
- The Lions Club may be exempt from a license requirement if it prepares or serves food intended for individual portion service for not more than 52 separate days during a licensing period. Exemption status also applies if a food service operation serves 13 or fewer individuals daily.
Wayman said her interpretation for the 13-or-less-individuals exemption was that it meant an annual average of serving less than 13 people daily. That means if the Lions Club served more than 13 people at an event on one day, but the annual average was at or beneath that limit, the exemption would still apply.
“I just want you to know that we took your letter to heart. This morning when we had our leadership meeting, we tried to find a better way in which we could accomodate your needs,” Taylor told Reidy.
In other business
Taylor told the board she was working on implementing a cybersecurity attack plan and the Community Health Improvement plan.
Taylor also asked the board to approve the health department be closed early on Dec. 24 and fully closed on Dec. 26. The board approved the request.
The board also discussed the proposed condemnation of two Ashland properties: 1118 Elm St. and 1100 Cottage St. The condemnation request was issued by the city of Ashland because the properties lack running water.
The city determined that “people existed in the buildings,” and the unsanitary conditions make the properties unfit for dwelling until the issues are resolved. The board supported the plan to condemn the properties.
A condemnation notice will be issued by the city of Ashland, and inhabitants must vacate the property until the issues are resolved. If the issues are not resolved, the city may take further action, such as demolition.
