Minutes

West Carrollton City Council Meeting

January 25, 2000

PRESENT: Mayor Maxine Gilman; Council Members Vern Angerer, William Gordon, Jack Jensen and Donald Mounce; City Manager G. Tracy Williams; Assistant City Manager David Watson; Law Director Patrick Carney; Fire Chief Jack Keister; Police Chief Don Rice; Parks and Recreation Director Rick Bolton; Director of Planning and Economic Development David Humphreys and Assistant Clerk of Council Patricia Replogle.

EXCUSED: Councilmember Linda Lotspaih and Councilmember Jeff Sanner.

The meeting was called to order by Mayor Gilman. Rev. Richard Gilbertson of Grace Lutheran Church gave the invocation. The Pledge of Allegiance followed.

MINUTES

A motion was made by Mr. Mounce, seconded by Mr. Gordon, to approve the minutes of the Regular Council Meeting of January 11, 2000. A roll call vote was taken, all members present voted yes. The motion carried.

PUBLIC HEARINGS

There were no Public Hearings.

COMMUNICATIONS AND PRESENTATIONS

RES. 1-2000: WILLIAM ENNIS

Resolution No. 1-2000 - A resolution acknowledging the appreciation of the citizens and public officials of the City of West Carrollton for services rendered unto said City by William Ennis.

Mayor Gilman read the Resolution and presented it to Mr. Ennis. Mayor Gilman told Mr. Ennis that the City appreciates all he has done for the citizens, both has Fire Chief and Council member. Mr. Ennis thanked the Mayor and commended the Street Department for the excellent job they have done on the streets during the recent snow. He thanked Council and the citizens.

RES. NO. 2-2000: KATHY KROPFF

Resolution No. 2-2000: A resolution acknowledging the appreciation of the citizens and public officials of the City of West Carrollton for services rendered unto said City by Kathy Kropff.

Mayor Gilman noted that Ms. Kropff was not present at the meeting and the resolution would be presented to her at another time. She added that Ms. Kropff will be missed on the Business Advisory Council.

RES. NO. 3-2000: VERN OAKLEY

Resolution No. 3-2000: A resolution acknowledging the appreciation of the citizens and public officials of the City of West Carrollton for services rendered unto said City by Vern Oakley.

Mayor Gilman read the Resolution and presented it to Mr. Oakley. She thanked him for his work on the Business Advisory Council and said that he will be missed. She added that he was a valuable member of BAC and an important part of the West Carrollton business community. Mr. Oakley thanked the Mayor and Council.

RES. NO. 4-2000: JODY JONES

Resolution No. 4-2000: A resolution acknowledging the appreciation of the citizens and public officials of the City of West Carrollton for services rendered unto said City by Jody Jones.

The Mayor read the Resolution and presented it to Ms. Jones. She thanked her for her work on the City Beautiful Commission and said she will be missed. Ms. Jones thanked the Mayor and Council.

RES. NO. 5-2000: CHARLES CHINN

Resolution No. 5-2000: A resolution acknowledging the appreciation of the citizens and public officials of the City of West Carrollton for services rendered unto said City by Charles Chinn.

Mayor Gilman read the resolution and presented it to Mr. Chinn. She thanked him for his service to the City for the last thirty years. She said the resolution doesn't begin to express the true appreciation for all he has done. Mr. Chinn said that he is not leaving and will continue his work with the City. He thanked the Mayor and Council.

Chief Rice introduced Officer Monson, accompanied by his wife, Kelly, and their son, Jacob. Chief Rice reviewed some of Officer Monson's background. The Mayor administered the oath of office to Officer Monson and wished him success in his career with the City.

The Mayor then opened the floor for Council comments. Mr. Gordon said that Mr. Ennis will be missed and it's been a pleasure to serve with him. Mr. Angerer wished Mr. Ennis the best in his retirement. Mr. Jensen thanked Mr. Ennis for his years of service as fire chief and on Council. Mr. Mounce said that he was glad Mr. Chinn is not leaving the City and wished Mr. Ennis good luck, adding that he has done an exceptional job on Council and phenomenal job as fire chief.


Mayor Gilman told Mr. Ennis that we can always use volunteers, that she will miss him and considers him a friend. She told Officer Monson that we will expect thirty years of service from him also. She thanked everyone for coming to the meeting. Mr. Williams congratulated Mr. Ennis on his retirement. He said that one of his responsibilities is to bring in good people and Mr. Ennis has been a great asset to the City, both as fire chief and Council member, adding that he is grateful for all of his service.

COMMENTS BY THE AUDIENCE

There were no Comments by the Audience.

There was no Unfinished Business

Ordinance No. 3154: An ordinance providing for personnel classification, rates of pay, benefits, work rules, and working conditions for certain positions in the Service Department and Parks and Recreation Department of the City of West Carrollton, authorizing the City Manager to enter into an agreement with the West Carrollton Independent Employees Association representing said employees and repealing Ordinance No. 3035, Ordinance No. 3143 and any other ordinances in conflict herewith and declaring an emergency.

Mr. Jensen made a motion, seconded by Mr. Gordon, to approve Ordinance No. 3154. A roll call vote was taken, all members present voted yes and the motion carried.

Mayor Gilman said that she appreciated the staff and employees working together to reach an agreement.

Mayor Gilman asked if Mr. Carney has reviewed the agreement and found that he had and it is in order.

A motion was made by Mr. Mounce, seconded by Mr. Angerer, to authorize the City Manager to enter into an annual lease agreement with Grant Kirby for use of the property located near Alex Road and Liberty Lane for athletic fields. A roll call vote was taken, all members present voted yes and the motion carried.

REPORTS BY OFFICERS

Mr. Williams welcomed Officer Monson. He also expressed his appreciation to Captain Chinn and said that he has given much to the City. Mr. Williams also expressed his gratitude to the employees for their efforts in keeping the streets clear during the snow.

Mr. Carney commended Mr. Williams and Mr. Hill for the good work on the City streets.

There were no Comments by the Audience.

Mr. Angerer and Mr. Jensen wished good luck to Officer Monson and thanked the staff for their work on the streets.

Mr. Mounce welcomed Officer Monson, offered his congratulations to the Business Advisory Council members, Kathy Kropff and Vern Oakley, and thanked the staff for the good job on the snow removal.

Mr. Gordon congratulated Officer Monson. He said that he is glad Captain Chinn is staying with the City as he is a great instructor and on the scene. He also expressed appreciation for the good work on the snow removal. Mr. Gordon also encouraged everyone to vote for the school levy.

Mayor Gilman said that we have a lot to be proud of in the City, and the secret of our success is the quality of the employees. She thanked Ron Ziemkowski on cameras.

Mayor Gilman made a motion, seconded by Mr. Gordon, to recess to a Work Session to discuss the items on the agenda. A unanimous roll call vote carried the motion. Council recessed.

Present: Mayor Maxine Gilman, Deputy Mayor Bill Gordon, Council Members Don Mounce, Jack Jensen, and Vern Angerer. Excused: Council Members Linda Lotspaih and Jeff Sanner. Also present: David Humphreys, Planning and Economic Development Director, G. Tracy Williams, City Manager and David Watson, Assistant City Manager.

Mayor Gilman opened the Work Session and asked Mr. Humphreys for his presentation on the comprehensive Zoning Code updates.

Mr. Humphreys began his presentation by offering a history of the code. He detailed the activities of the Planning Commission and their preparation of a "shopping list" of code sections which needed to be reviewed and/or updated. Mr. Humphreys informed Council that he had been collecting this information in preparation for hiring a consultant to work on the code update in the year 2000.

Mr. Humphreys' presentation:

The focus of the proposed code would be performance-based zoning. This would be a sharp change in how zoning codes are applied to the city of West Carrollton. But it is more in line with what are the changing characteristics of the urban development of an "inner ring" community such as West Carrollton. It would in fact increase flexibility in areas such as landscaping that has been somewhat stagnant and difficult to work with.

Mr. Humphreys' presentation on Zoning Code changes concluded.

Council discussed items from the presentation. Council expressed to Mr. Humphreys and staff their desire that the process of working with the Planning Commission and the Board of Zoning Appeals continue, to identify problems and to make recommendations on changes that Council could then address. Mr. Humphreys responded that the groups have been doing a lot of updating over the last two years. He continued, that large parts of the Code may in fact not need any improvements other than some "tweaking", and that major changes may not need to be done at all.

Additional discussion was held involving Council's expectations for performing an update of the Zoning Code. Mayor Gilman suggested that this item be included on the agenda for Council's Joint Meeting with the Planning Commission and the Board of Zoning Appeals in February.

Mr. Williams asked Council if they had had a chance to review the memo from Mr. Watson with regard to tentative dates for upcoming events: Volunteer Appreciation Banquet; Senior Citizens Appreciation Reception; Civic Leaders Dinner; and the Mayor's Awards. Council recommended Monday, April 10^th be set aside for the Volunteer Appreciation Banquet. After some discussion Council decided to discontinue the Senior Citizens Appreciation Reception at this time, while its need was evaluated and/or options were explored for recognition of seniors in the community. Tuesday, October 17^th, was selected as the date for the Civic Leaders Dinner. The date for the annual Mayor's Awards was set for Tuesday, November 14^th.

Mayor Gilman reminded Council that the I-75 study group will be meeting on February 3^rd, adding that council members are encouraged to attend.

Mr. Williams reviewed a memo to Council on the transportation and economic development summit regarding the I-75 corridor study to be held at Sinclair Community College. The meeting will be a joint meeting with the OKI, MVRPC, and ODOT. Mayor Gilman asked if any council members plan to attend. Deputy Mayor Gordon replied that he would be attending on February 4^th.

Mayor Gilman asked for any additional comments from Council.

Councilmember Jensen presented information on the West Carrollton School District's proficiency test scores, including how the District ranked in relation to neighboring communities. The scores indicated that the West Carrollton School District had a very low or very poor performance. Following some discussion, Council indicated that they need to ask the School District what the plan is to recover, or address the issues of the low performance.

Mr. Jensen led some discussion with regard to how these proficiency test scores might affect the community, particularly the passage of the levy on the March 7^th ballot, which the District needs to continue operations. Council suggested several strategies that they believe the School District should consider in the levy campaign.

Mayor Gilman presented a letter from the Combined Health District concerning support for the Human Services Levy, asking that the topic be placed on the next meeting agenda for action by Council.

Council reconvened into the regular meeting.

ADJOURNMENT

It was moved by Mr. Gordon, seconded by Mr. Mounce, to adjourn the meeting. All voting in favor, meeting adjourned.

Click here to send a note to the Administration