Minutes
July 11, 2000
PRESENT: Mayor Maxine Gilman; Council Members William Gordon, Vern Angerer, Jack Jensen, Linda Lotspaih and Jeff Sanner; City Manager G. Tracy Williams; Law Director Patrick Carney; Finance Director Tom Reilly; Service Director Theo Brown and Assistant Clerk of Council Patricia Replogle.
EXCUSED: Council Member Donald Mounce.
The meeting was called to order by Mayor Gilman. Alan Arber, Deacon at St. Henry Parish, gave the Invocation. The Pledge of Allegiance and Roll Call followed.
MINUTES
A motion was made by Mr. Gordon, seconded by Mr. Sanner, to approve the minutes of the Regular Council Meeting of June 27, 2000. A roll call vote was taken, all members present voted yes with the exception of Mayor Gilman who abstained. The motion carried.
PUBLIC HEARINGS
There were no Public Hearings.
COMMUNICATIONS AND PRESENTATIONS
DANA GREEN - REPORT FROM 2000 CHARTER REVIEW COMMISSION
Dana Green addressed Council regarding the 2000 Charter Review Commission Report. He stated that the Commission has met twice in June to discuss any possible changes. The Commission feels that the Charter has served well for the first five years. The Commission does not recommend any changes for the November 6, 2000 ballot. In 2005, they do recommend reviewing Article 9, Boards & Commissions, Sections 901-903-905, to discuss the possible requirement of a qualified electorate serving in the functions indicated, rather than just the residency requirement. They are not recommending that change, merely stating that those sections may need to be reviewed. Mr. Green thanked Council for the opportunity to serve on the 2000 Commission. Mayor Gilman thanked Mr. Green and the other Commission members for serving.
COMMENTS BY THE AUDIENCE
There were no Comments by the Audience.
UNFINISHED BUSINESS
ORDINANCE NO. 3162: MODIFY SPI-1 DISTRICT REGULATIONS
Ordinance No. 3162: An ordinance amending the Springboro Pike overlay district (SPI-1) regulations attached to Ordinance No. 2745 to allow barber shops and beauty salons as principally permitted uses and to modify front yard landscaping requirements in the SPI-1 District per Section 154.185, Zoning Code - Landscape Requirements: Screening, Buffer Yards and Tree Lawns in the SPI-1 District.
Mayor Gilman noted that she had watched a tape of the meeting at which the first reading of this ordinance had taken place and she has read the staff report.
Mr. Jensen made a motion, seconded by Mrs. Lotspaih, to approve Ordinance No. 3162. All members present voted yes to a roll call vote and the motion carried.
NEW BUSINESS
2001 TAX BUDGET TO COUNTY AUDITOR
Mayor Gilman asked Mr. Reilly if there had been any input at the public hearing regarding the 2001 tax budget. Mr. Reilly responded that no one had attended the hearing.
Mr. Jensen made a motion, seconded by Mr. Sanner, to authorize the City Manager to submit the 2001 Tax Budget to the County Auditor. All members present voted yes to a roll call vote and the motion carried.
REPORTS BY THE OFFICERS
Mr. Williams said that he has received many favorable comments regarding the fireworks. He also wanted to reassure the residents in the areas where street re-surfacing is being done that the present condition of the streets will not remain that way. The final phase of the work is still to be completed.
UNSCHEDULED BUSINESS
COMMENTS BY THE AUDIENCE
Billy J. Marsh of 1148 South Alex Road addressed Council. Mr. Marsh stated that he had attended the Focus Group Meeting on June 22nd, regarding the RV parking ordinance. He feels that there are several items which were not answered. Mr. Marsh feels that no changes are needed at this time regarding parking RV's. He listed several questions that he wished Council or the City Manager to answer. He submitted a written copy of the questions. Mr. William stated that he would review those questions. The Mayor added that Mr. Marsh's questions would be taken into careful consideration. Mr. Jensen asked what a "class B RV" is. Mr. Marsh responded that it is a normal, full-size van, usually with a raised roof and sometimes extended. Mr. Jensen assured Mr. Marsh that the RV issue will return to a public hearing before anything is done.
COMMENTS BY COUNCIL
Mr. Sanner said that the fireworks were great. He also assured Mr. Marsh that the RV ordinance applies to many vehicles including trailers and would need to be strongly reviewed before any type of action is taken.
Mr. Gordon said that the fireworks were great and that it is good that West Carrollton and Moraine work together to put on a great display. He also added that he is glad to see that the street work is being done correctly, especially the area around manhole covers. Mr. Gordon thanked the 2000 Charter Commission for their work. He said that the Lions club and the Rotary Club are looking for new members, and he thanked the Director of the Chamber of Commerce for speaking at the Lions Club meeting.
Mr. Angerer said the fireworks were great and thanked Mr. Green and the other members of the Charter Commission. He also noted that any RV ordinance will definitely be reviewed.
Mr. Jensen also complimented the fireworks and thanked Mr. Green. He also invited anyone interested to attend the Public Input Meeting for the I-75 Corridor Study which will be held in two weeks at the Miamisburg High School from 5 - 8 p.m.
Mrs. Lotspaih also commended the fireworks. She also challenged RV owners for their input into suggestions regarding the ordinance, adding that everyone should be involved in drafting an agreeable ordinance.
Mayor Gilman thanked Mr. Gordon for filling in for her while she was away on city business. The Mayor also thanked Ron Ziemkowski on cameras. Mayor Gilman mentioned that August 1st will be National Night Out and will include an Open House at the Police Department from 7 - 10 p.m. She also noted that July 17th will be the 100th birthday of West Carrollton resident, Elizabeth DeWeese. She said that a celebration will be held at the Grace Lutheran Church on Saturday, June 15th, from 2 - 4 p.m., and invited everyone to attend. Mayor Gilman also added a "hello" to another Elizabeth, her granddaughter.
RECESS
A motion was made by Mayor Gilman, 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.
WORK SESSION
In addition to City Council Members present, those in attendance for the Work Session were David T. Brown, Service Director; Pat Carney, Law Director; Tom Reilly, Finance Director; G. Tracy Williams, City Manager; and Doug Pettit, representing the Dayton Power & Light Company.
UTILITY FRANCHISES & RIGHT-OF-WAY ORDINANCE
Due to a potential conflict of interest, Councilmember Jack Jensen excused himself from this discussion and left the room.
City Manager Williams and Law Director Pat Carney discussed the proposed new franchises with the Dayton Power & Light Company, for both electric and natural gas. Also, they discussed the draft of a right-of-way ordinance, which was prepared by the City of Englewood. It was noted that several cities in the area have worked closely with the City of Englewood in reviewing this right-of-way ordinance, and that other communities in the area plan to adopt this ordinance.
Doug Pettit from Dayton Power & Light noted that his company has worked closely with the City of Englewood and the other communities involved, in helping to review the proposed right-of-way ordinance. Mr. Pettit continued that DP&L is also satisfied with the proposed franchise agreements for electric and natural gas.
Following the discussion on the proposed new utility franchises, and the draft right-of-way ordinance, City Council requested that these documents be put in final form and placed on their next agenda for consideration.
Following discussion on this matter, Doug Pettit, Pat Carney, and David T. Brown left the meeting. Councilmember Jack Jensen returned to the meeting.
ANNUAL AUDIT & QUARTERLY FINANCIAL REPORT
Finance Director Tom Reilly explained to City Council that the city received an excellent report on its annual audit, and was available to answer any questions. Mr. Reilly also reviewed the quarterly financial status report with City Council. City Council commended Mr. Reilly on the excellent audit report. It was the consensus of all involved that the city would continue to monitor the financial condition as the year progresses.
Following discussion on these matters, Tom Reilly left the meeting.
RECREATIONAL VEHICLES
City Council decided to postpone discussion on this topic until all City Council members could be present. It was anticipated that this would probably be the Council meeting scheduled for August 8th.
ANNUAL VISION RETREAT
City Council requested that City Manager Williams prepare a list of Action Items for their review based on the City Council's recent vision retreat.
FRASER PAPERS
City Manager Williams advised Council that he had met with Willis Blevins, Mill Manager for Fraser Papers, regarding the possibility of obtaining Slonaker Drive between Locust and Elm Streets. Mr. Williams noted that Mr. Blevins was favorable to this request, but Mr. Blevins had to receive approval from corporate headquarters before a definite answer could be given.
STREET LIGHTS
Due to a potential conflict, Councilmember Jack Jensen asked to be excused and left the room for this discussion.
City Manager Williams stated that the city had received a proposal from the Dayton Power and Light Company to upgrade several of the city's older street lights, and that he was going to reconsider this proposal in light of current negotiations that are going on with the Cable Council member cities for a new street lighting contract with DP&L.Williams noted that if DP&L lowers the cost for street lights, it might be possible to upgrade the older lights without a significant increase in cost; however, this will depend on the newly negotiated street light rates which are currently under discussion. Williams indicated that he would update Council on this matter once the new information is studied.
At the conclusion of this discussion, Councilmember Jensen re-entered the meeting room.
SOUTH METRO CHAMBER OF COMMERCE ANNUAL AWARDS
The City Council briefly discussed the annual business awards given by the South Metro Regional Chamber of Commerce. City Manager Williams distributed a list of businesses in West Carrollton that are members of the Chamber.
COMMENTS BY COUNCIL
Councilmember Linda Lotspaih raised a question regarding the possibility of establishing a Walk/Plaza of Fame to give recognition to West Carrollton residents. Mayor Gilman assigned the Special Studies Committee, consisting of council members Lotspaih and Sanner, to study this matter and to report their recommendations back to City Council.
Deputy Mayor Bill Gordon noted that the Lions Club would be holding a special meeting on July 19th, at 7:30 p.m., to discuss various ideas about revising the format for the West Carrollton Paper Festival. He indicated that any interested persons are welcome to attend.
Councilmember Jensen requested a staff report on the issuance of speeding tickets, as he felt that the revenues produced by speeding tickets had declined greater than would have been expected due to the increase in speed limits on various major streets in the city. Councilmember Jensen also noted that he felt the possibility of closing Central Avenue for the annual Paper Festival should be considered.
Councilmember Jensen updated City Council on matters related to MVRPC. Councilmember Jensen noted that the cost to do the environmental impact study for proposed S.R. 892 had increased from the original estimate of $2 million to over $5 million. Based on this increase in cost, he noted that possibly only the proposed Austin Road interchange on I-75 would be studied, with the possibility of the new road extending only to State Route 4. Discussion was held as to whether or not City Council feels that S.R. 892 should still be studied even though the cost has substantially increased. Councilmember Jensen also noted that there is general concern among officials in the area, that this region does not receive its fair share of money compared to other areas of Ohio, and that our region needs to pull together and speak with a united voice in order to compete more effectively against other regions in the state. Following discussion on the proposed S.R. 892 study, it was the consensus of City Council that the city should support the proposed Austin Road interchange study.
Council member Jensen also discussed the Fourth of July fireworks, and requested that staff attempt to work closely with Five Rivers MetroParks, or others, to possibly provide entertainment in the low dam area next year prior to the fireworks display.
Councilmember Vern Angerer indicated that he has been reading about the proposed light rail system to potentially be developed between Dayton and Cincinnati, and that he is not in favor of this proposed light rail transportation system. Councilmember Angerer also noted that a problem has been reported to him by residents living on West Main Street, regarding mosquitoes in the area of West Central Avenue. He requested that the city manager investigate this matter to see what might be done to abate this mosquito problem. City Manager Williams indicated that he would contact the Health District and ask the District to check into this matter.
Councilmember Jeff Sanner inquired about the new rules issued by the State Department of Health concerning diving restrictions at public swimming pools, which prohibit diving into water less than four feet deep. City Manager Williams indicated that these new rules will impact many swimming pools around the state of Ohio, but that they were apparently adopted by the State Department of Health as a safety measure.
Mayor Gilman noted that she had received a request from the Five Rivers MetroParks for a $5000 contribution to help make improvements at Cox Arboretum and Gardens. The request is that the city contribute $1,000 per year over the next five years as a pledge for the improvements at Cox Arboretum and Gardens.
A motion to adjourn the meeting was made by Deputy Mayor Gordon, seconded by Councilmember Lotspaih. All voting in favor, the meeting was adjourned at 10:25 p.m.
MAYOR CLERK OF COUNCIL