Fulton County Ohio Media

Swanton Village Councilman Deacon Dzierzawski, recently accused of micromanaging the Village Administration by several individuals, was called to task by fellow Councilman John Schmidt for similar issues during Monday night’s emotionally-charged and tension-filled Village Council meeting.  Mr. Dzierzawski’s demands on the previous Fiscal Officer Holden Benfield’s time were given, in part, by Mr. Holden, for his resignation in March of this year.  Similar demands on Village Administrator Shannon Shulters’ time were also given, in part, by Ms. Shulters, for her impending resignation which is scheduled to take effect on August 31^st.

Statements regarding the current state of affairs of the Council were read by Mayor Neil Toeppe, Administrator Shulters, and Councilwoman Westhoven.  Following those statements Mr. Schmidt spoke.  “I have been relatively quiet over the past few months regarding to recent events and comments made in the public gallery.  And I have reached a point where I can no longer maintain that silence,” he said.  Councilman Schmidt then read a prepared statement which is below in its entirety:

“Councilman Dzierzawski’s heavy reliance on the Ohio Municipal League over the Ohio Revised Code, the Ohio Auditor of State and the Ohio Attorney General’s office is misguided, without merit and simply wrong.  The Ohio Municipal League may be experts, but they are NOT the authority.  He has quoted precedent and accepted practice for his actions since winning the election in 2025. I question where “precedent and accepted practice” were established; certainly not here in the Village of Swanton.  Therefore, there can be no existence of “precedent” or “accepted practice” in Swanton.

Nowhere in the Ohio Revised Code does it state or delineate the authority of individual council members.  In fact, the ORC continually refers to the “legislative authority” which is the council body as a whole.  The only exception is the President Pro Tempore, and the duties that member carries out in the absence or incapacitation of the mayor.

Each member of this Council is a representative of the people, chosen by the electors to represent them in matters of legislation and oversight (side note: oversight does NOT mean management; it means supervision or watchful care).  That legislation and oversight happen only at meetings of the village Council.  No individual member has that authority outside Council chambers.  Once a meeting has ended and a member leaves the Council chambers, he or she is John Q. Public, with no more authority than any other citizen of the village, and with the same rights.

I’d offer Councilman during the emotionally charged and tension-filled Village Council meeting this advice:  Stay within the rules outlined in the Ohio Revised Code, the Village Officer’s Handbook, by the Auditor of State and the Attorney General’s office; stay within the boundaries of the Village Council; and raise questions and concerns during meetings of the Council. 

It is no secret that Councilman Dzierzawski’s aggressive and ostentatious nature has created a toxic environment within the village administration.  That environment has been filled with mistrust and apprehension.  He claims it is “absurd” to believe that the resignation of the Fiscal Officer and the Village Administrator can blamed on him or his position or his actions.

Councilman Dzierzawski campaigned last year on a platform of transparency, yet he has not released any emails or documentation he generated or received from any of the village administrative or department heads.

In that regard, I would make a motion that Councilman Dzierzawski release to every member of this Council any and all emails to Village administrative team, safety chiefs and department heads, any handwritten notes of phone conversations, any email responses from them, any reports or any other documentation in his possession regarding budgets, personnel, equipment and or operations before the next meeting of Swanton Village Council scheduled for August 24, 2026.”

Councilman Dave Pilliod spoke next, defending Mr. Dzierzawski’s questions to the Administration during business hours but did not comment on the overall quantity or the hours spent researching for answers.  He did encourage his fellow Council members to try and move past the recent disagreements and work together for the Village’s benefit.

Editor’s Note:  This meeting, like all Swanton government meetings, can be viewed on the Village’s Facebook page. 

Photo: Swanton Village Council (L to R) – Dave Pilliod, John Schmidt, Deacon Dzierawski, Shannon Shulters, Neil Toeppe, Dianne Westhoven, Pat Pilliod, Noah Kreuz