Brookfield Police Cpl. Jay First talks to Tommie Phillips in this photo from July.

Brookfield Police Cpl. Jay First talks to Tommie Phillips in this photo from July.

Brookfield Township has won a court order enforcing a settlement agreement that called for the cleanup of junk vehicles and other items that are stored outdoors at 8085 Warren Sharon Road, but will have to wait a while and seek a second court order before it can send a contractor onto the property to do the work.
The township and Tommie and Kathy Norris Phillips met at the Trumbull County Courthouse for a hearing on the township’s motion to enforce the Oct. 15, 2019, settlement agreement in which the Phillipses agreed to clean up their property, or to allow the township to do it.
A contractor hired by the trustees removed a boat and a car on Nov. 27, 2019, but said the property was too wet to remove more. Winter and the COVID-19 pandemic followed, and the trustees didn’t try again until July 16, when Tommie Phillips claimed the township had run out of time to remove vehicles.
The trustees filed the motion to enforce the settlement agreement, arguing that there was no time limit.
An evidentiary hearing was set for Jan. 15, but the parties met and reached the agreement without proceeding with the hearing. Judge W. Wyatt McKay signed off on the agreement.
promoTownship Code Enforcement Officer Peter Ross said the Phillipses must have an opportunity to undertake the cleanup themselves. There was no specific time limit set for them to do so, but Ross said Jan. 19 that he is not anxious to act right away because of the condition of the ground.
“We wouldn’t be able to get any equipment back there,” he said.
The Phillipses have done some dirt moving on the property and Phillips said he wants to put up a garage, Ross said.
If the Phillipses do not clean up the property, the township will need to file a request with the court that the Phillipses be held in contempt and have the judge agree before the township can move in, Ross said.