The Village of Weston Council
February 2, 2015
The meeting was called to order by Mayor Jason Worthen at 7:00pm, followed by the pledge of allegiance.
Roll Call: Mrs. Danelle Langley, Mrs. Tammy McClellan, Mr. Jeremy Schroeder, Mr. Shad Kendall, Mr. Gregory Stevens, and Mrs. Dawn Blandy were all present.
The minutes from the previous meeting (1/20/15) were reviewed and approved as read.
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Visitor(s):
· Deputy Aring attended the meeting. Council had no new issues to report.
· Randy Tolles was in attendance on behalf of the Fire Department. He informed council that the Wood County EMA got a federal grant for inflatable light towers, and would like to place 3 of them at strategic points across the county. They asked us if we would be willing to house one of them, in exchange for the ability to use it whenever desired; we would just be required to take it to them when they need it. Council was in favor of doing this, and Mrs. McClellan put their approval in the form of a motion. Mr. Kendall seconded, all were in favor; motion passed.
· Gloria & Alan Hughes and Leo Schivelbein, residents of the Lawndale Senior Community, came to the meeting to discuss the recently proposed idea of re-zoning the senior side of the mobile home park from Manufactured to Residential. (They were under the impression that Charlie Robinson and Arthur Menaldi would also be in attendance this evening, but they were not.) They voiced their concerns over the issues of requiring permanent foundations and/or having to purchase their own lots, both which the majority cannot afford. It was explained that this is simply an idea at this point, and we have not moved forward with any changes to zoning. If we were to do so, we would make sure that the units not on foundations would be grandfathered in, so that the residents would not be put out in any way.
· Keith Leady was also in attendance but brought no business before council.
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The payment register (chk #’s 46371-46372 and 46378-46389, totaling $37,886.32) was presented to council. Mrs. Langley moved to pay the bills, seconded by Mrs. McClellan, all were in favor; passed.
Ordinance 2015-2, to approve, adopt, and enact the 2015 Ohio Basic Code as Weston’s comprehensive code of ordinances, was read, declaring an emergency. Mr. Schroeder moved to suspend the rules, Mr. Kendall seconded the motion, and a roll call vote was taken: 6 ayes and 0 nays. Mr. Stevens moved for passage, seconded by Mrs. McClellan, all were in favor; passed.
The door postings for snow removal were briefly discussed. The 24 hour notice is now required (Ord 2014-8) before the Village can clear snow from resident walks. These will be posted tomorrow morning.
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Council/Committee Business:
· Mrs. Langley made mention of the stop sign at the end of her alley that still needs to be fixed.
· Mrs. McClellan announced that tonight’s Finance Committee meeting has been moved to 2/16/15 (at 6:30pm), due to the weather.
· Mr. J Schroeder stated that he will email out the revised draft of the 235 sign.
· Mr. Stevens reported on the 1/27/15 Safety Committee meeting:
Ø For 2014, the EMS ended with 336 runs, which was higher than 2013.
Ø The Milton Center EMS contract was discussed, as it has not yet been signed/returned.
Ø The new deluxe training dummy has been received, as well as several other dummies and training items. The EMS will be getting the new “I Am Responding” system, and they will also be purchasing a second LUCAS CPR device so that we have one in each squad.
· Mr. Stevens also brought up the idea of creating Government IDs for all of our employees, as the Fire Department does for their members. This would allow everyone to prove their employment as a means for discounts and special offers outside of the Village. Mr. Stevens moved to go forward with this, Mrs. McClellan seconded, all were in favor; passed. Sarah will work with Mrs. Langley to gather pictures and create a design.
· Mrs. Blandy reminded everyone of the Cemetery Board meeting on 2/5/15 at 6pm.
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Mr. T Schroeder thanked Randy and Dale for their help plowing snow recently. Between the three of them, they may have hit a few mailboxes, which will need to be replaced. The tailgate on the 1-ton truck will need to be straightened, which he can have done at Fletcher’s. He also reported that we should probably have enough salt to get us through the winter.
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Mayor’s Business:
1. We have one opening on the Zoning Board that we will need to fill.
2. In relation to the Milton Center EMS Contract, he has spoken to both Chief Heyman and the Sheriff. The contract expired on 1/30/15 (after the 30 day grace period), and we are no longer covering their area. A certified letter will be sent to Milton Center tomorrow to notify them of this, as well as non-certified letters to all of their council members. We will also put this in writing for the Sheriff’s Dept.
3. He contracted the Sheriff and the Commissioners in relation to the Sheriff’s Department cost increase, effective 1/1/15. We should also be expecting at least another 2.5% increase next year. They’ve been informed that we will be cutting back our hours, which we also need to send to them in writing.
4. He asked Tim to make a list of the signs and posts that need to be replaced.
At 7:41pm, Mrs. McClellan moved to go into executive session for the purpose of discussing the final candidates for the PT/Seasonal Maintenance Tech position. Mrs. Blandy seconded the motion, all were in favor; passed. At the advice of the solicitor, it was decided that Mrs. Langley and the Mayor were not to be involved in any discussion related to Mr. Tolles, as he serves as their supervisor in his capacity as Fire Chief. (The Mayor and Fiscal Officer excused themselves from the room.)
At 8:20pm, Mr. Kendall moved to go back into regular session, seconded by Mr. Stevens, all were in favor; passed. Mr. Stevens reported that the hiring committee had narrowed it down to three individuals--- Randy Tolles, Cody McKenzie, and Dale Johnson. Their qualifications and applications were reviewed and discussed by council.
A roll call vote was then taken: Mrs. Langley- Tolles; Mrs. McClellan- Tolles; Mr. Schroeder- Johnson; Mr. Kendall- Tolles; Mr. Stevens- Mr. McKenzie; and Mrs. Blandy- Mr. Tolles. With the majority of the votes, Randy Tolles was appointed to the position. Council asked how much we’d been paying Mr. Johnson to help out when needed, and the Fiscal Officer stated that he’s been getting $12.98/hour (which is his Cemetery salary, divided by 20 hours/week). Council quickly decided that Mr. Tolles would start off at this same rate.
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Mrs. Blandy noted that she will not be at the next council meeting on 2/17/15 (which falls on a Tuesday due to the Presidents’ Day Holiday).
No further business was brought before council. The meeting was adjourned at 8:25pm.
Sarah Schroeder, Jason Worthen,
Fiscal Officer Mayor