Friday - June 18: Village Council held their second Special Meeting of the week last Friday at Village Hall. Present at the meeting was Mayor Joe Surace, Council Members Susan Haugh, Rosie Goss, Joe Soldano, Randy Allmon & Tony Cataldo, Fiscal Officer Dale Davis, Village Administrator Jim Saracco, Zoning Administrator Rick Williams, WPD Acting Chief Lt. Ed Wilson and WFD Chief Bill Smith.
In accordance with Ohio Revised Code any Council meeting that isn't regularly scheduled is considered to be a Special Council Meeting and a specific agenda of items to be dealt with has to be listed. Only those items can be discussed for pending action by Council. Friday's agenda had six items to be addressed with the sixth dealing with two zoning ordinance amendments and three resolutions regarding tax issues.
After opening the meeting Mayor Surace announced that a zoning variance for a proposed bakery in the old McDonald School will be eliminated from the agenda. That issue had to be referred to the Zoning Board first.
The second item dealt with was a request for a liquor license from Platinum Enterprises LLC to O S Platinum LLC doing business in the old Potters Bank & Trust building at 358 Main St. The license is currently held by Sharon Gates according to Cataldo and the transfer was requested by Judith McIlvain, Depot Rd., Lisbon, OH. McIlvain was listed as the managing member with 5% or greater membership interest in the corporation.
Before any discussion Councilman Allmon motioned to approve the transfer prompting Councilwoman Goss to ask "did we investigate this? Do we know anything about it?" Soldano remarked that it was the first time he's seen it and Lt. Wilson advised the transfer request was never referred to the Police Dept. Allmon's motion did not get a second and he withdrew his motion. Surace remarked it will be tabled for further investigation.
Council then authorized the Village Fiscal Officer to advertise for bids for 12 new air paks for the Fire Dept. The self contained breathing apparatuses will be funded from a $127,000 FEMA grant awarded to the Village earlier this year according to WFD Chief Smith.
Council also authorized the Fiscal Officer to advertise for bids for improvements at the Sewage Treatment Plant converting the digesters to aerobic digesters. That project was held up awaiting approval by the Ohio EPA of the engineers plans. According to Village officials that approval has been granted allowing to bid out the construction work. When completed it will hopefully eliminate the stench coming from the Sewage Plant.
Council then moved on to the ordinance amendments and resolutions. Motions were made to suspend the rules on all five so the items could be voted on and enacted without farther delay. The first ordinance passed amends the zoning fee for signs from $5 to $10 and an additional $2 from $1 for each additional square foot over 20 square feet.
The next ordinance passed pertains to mobile homes "deemed a nuisance, providing notice to the owner to remove..." Before voting on the changes Cataldo stated that Council needs to add any expenses incurred by the Village will be charged to the owner's property taxes which will be a lien on the property until it is paid. Cataldo suggested tabling the vote on the ordinance until that provision could be added. Soldano stated there is "no need to hold this ordinance up" and motioned to change the line in Section 4 to include that language. The change was accepted.
Council then passed a resolution to exclude the approval of East Liverpool that would otherwise be required for the apportionment of Local Goverment Funds for 2011. Davis indicated that this is a formality dealt with annually as required by the County Auditor pertaining to the distribution of CDBG funds. Davis also advised that at the next meeting Council will be voting on a resolution to accept the per centages of that distribution that were set by the County.
The last two resolutions passed were for the tax levies that will be on the November General Election ballot. Both are requesting that the County Auditor certify Village tax valuation for the anticipated levies. Once this information is obtained Village officials will be able to advise the voters exactly how much the levies will affect a resident's real estate tax. The first levy is a one mill renewal for the General Fund for operating expenses. The second levy is for a seven mill replacement Fire levy. Council had wanted to renew the one mill Fire levy and replace the six mill Fire levy that is now being collected. However Davis advised Council that the County lumped the two levies into one seven mill levy since they are both for the same purpose. The Village can not split the levies as hoped.
Council then retired into Executive Session with Consultant Joe Lencewicz and the Village Administrator to discuss the the union contract that has been in negotiations since early this year. The contract expired 12/31/2009. Lencewicz was contracted last year to negotiate with the union on behalf of the Village. The AFSCME union represents five village employees. In a planning session last year Lencewicz advised the Village Personnel Committee that since Wellsville is classified as a Village State law does not require that the union be recognized.
Upon returning after nearly 45 minutes Councilwoman Goss motioned that lgislation be ordered in to terminate the current collective bargaining agreement between the Village and the union effective July 3. Allmon complimented Soldano and the Personnel Committee for trying to negotiate a contract stating he can not vote in favor of that because of his personal beliefs and respect of the union members. Haugh responded to Allmon "personal beliefs and feelings do not belong here. We (Council) are voted in to do what is best for the tax payers and to be good stewards of the tax payer's dollars". Indicating that she herself was torn with her personal opinions on this matter, Haugh concluded "we are to do the job we're elected to do and save the tax payer's dollars". Allmon responded that last year when he chaired the Personnel Committee he polled all five union members and they all said they want to stay in the union. "That's what I'm respecting", he added.
Goss commented that she was raised in a union family and has the deepest respect for unions. However, she added "you got to make a line whether to respect the union or respect the village. This village is hurting and you know it. We got to get moving on". Haugh commented it is costing the village thousands & thousands of dollars for the consultant to negotiate this contract and Goss concluded the Village can't afford to be stuck in the middle. The union has been reported to have turned down two or three offers for a new contract since negotiations began. Allmon added "nothing is going to change. They are going to get the same money they're getting now". The motion passed by a vote of 4 to 1.
Finally, Goss made a motion to order in legislation to establish wages & benefits for Village employees currently covered by the collective bargaining agreement. Before casting his vote Soldano clarified the neither he nor the Personnel Committee tried to negotiate this contract. All negotiations where handle by consultant Joe Lencewicz and Delauda Islam. The motioned passed on a unanimous vote.
Following the meeting we asked Lencewicz if this action concluded his dealing with the Village. He stated that he is still working on the grievance filed by the Cemetery Care Taker. That grievance is in regards of claimed loss of income when the care taker & his family was forced to move out the Village owned house at Spring Hill.
That grievance was taken to arbitration when Lencewicz contended the merits of the grievance was not arguable. A recent ruling by the arbitrator concluded there are merits for the grievance and now Lencewicz has to file briefs with the arbitrator relative to the remedy to settle the case.
Next regular Council meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, July 6 at 6 P.M. at Village Hall.
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