City Council

January 21, 2025 The Fredericktown Village Council met in regular session on January 21, 2025 at 7:00 p.m. at the Fredericktown Municipal Building. PRESENT: Council Members Brewer, Hobson, Lanuzza, McKnight and Shoemaker; Administrator Snell; Chief Myers; Solicitor Landon; Fiscal Officer Graves. ABSENT: Council Members de Rojas. Hobson made a motion to excuse the absence of Council Member de Rojas. Seconded by Brewer. All Yea. Mayor Day called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. INVOCATION: Chief Myers, Fredericktown Police Department. MINUTES:  Lanuzza made a motion to approve the January 6, 2025 council meeting minutes. Seconded by Hobson. All Yea, except de Rojas. VISITOR COMMENTS:  Bethany Peak and Tom Dusek, Auditor of State’s Office answered questions from Council members regarding the 2022-2023 audit. LEGISLATION:  (First Reading) RESOLUTION NO. 2025-01- A RESOLUTION TO APPROVE THE DELAWARE, KNOX, MARION, MORROW JOINT SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT DISTRICT’S SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT PLAN FIVE YEAR UPDATE  (First Reading) ORDINANCE NO. 2025-02 - AN ORDINANCE GRANTING FRANCHISE TO CONSOLIDATED ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE, ITS SUCCESSORS AND ASSIGNS, THE RIGHT TO ACQUIRE, CONSTRUCT, MAINTAIN, AND OPERATE IN THE STREETS, THOROUGHFARES, ALLEYS, BRIDGES, AND PUBLIC PLACES OF THE VILLAGE OF FREDERICKTOWN, STATE OF OHIO, AND ITS SUCCESSORS, LINES FOR THE TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION OF ELECTRIC ENERGY TO THE VILLAGE OF FREDERICKTOWN, AND THE INHABITANTS THEREOF FOR LIGHT, HEAT, POWER, AND OTHER PURPOSES, AND FOR THE TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION OF THE SAME WITHIN, THROUGH, OR ACROSS SAID VILLAGE OF FREDERICKTOWN, STATE OF OHIO Brad Ebersole, Consolidated Electric Cooperative, explained the renewal of the Franchise Agreement and answered questions from Council Members. Council agreed to change length of agreement to 25 years. OLD BUSINESS:  Water Improvements Project – None  Sewer Plant Project – None  Mayor’s 2025 Council Committees and Annual Appointments. Lanuzza made a motion to remove replace de Rojas with Brewer on the Finance Committee. Seconded by Hobson. All yea, except de Rojas. NEW BUSINESS: None VILLAGE ADMINISTRATOR'S REPORT: See report. FISCAL OFFICER'S REPORT: None POLICE CHIEF REPORT:  Department completed training on the new cameras installed at the Police Department. SOLICITOR’S REPORT:  Discussed executive session policies with Council. Snell/Graves will send current rules of Council to Landon to update. ZONING INSPECTOR’S REPORT:  Library needs new windows. Cost is $32,000, library will pay $16,000, and Village will pay remaining $16,000. Discussed old 1940s library agreement with Council. Will forward it to Solicitor Landon to look at.  Tom Carter is within Zoning Code to add additional unites to his building plan.  See Report. COMMITTEE REPORTS:  Safety, Public Works & Finance Committees – next meeting February 18th.  Planning Commission – next meeting January 27th, 5:00 p.m.  Miscellaneous Committee Reports EXECUTIVE SESSION:  Hobson made a motion to enter into executive session to discuss personnel. Seconded by Lanuzza. All yea. Council entered into executive session at 7:42 p.m. Council returned to regular session at 8:21 p.m. ADJOURNMENT: Hobson made a motion to adjourn. Seconded by Brewer. All Yea, except de Rojas. Meeting Adjourned at 8:22 p.m. _____________________________________ Jerry Day, Mayor ___________________________ Suzan Graves, Fiscal Officer TO: MAYOR & COUNCIL FROM: BRUCE SNELL, VILLAGE ADMINISTRATOR DATE: JANUARY 21, 2025 SUBJECT: ADMINISTRATOR’S UPDATE BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS The Board of Zoning Appeals did not meet in December as there was no business to discuss and we do not anticipate a BZA Meeting being scheduled this month. COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT The Fredericktown Community Development Foundation (FCDF) met December 9 th at 7:30 AM at the Old High School to discuss economic development in the community. The group is now meeting on the second Thursday of the month, so FCDF will meet again next month on February 13th. The FCDF held its first annual FCDF Awards Dinner at FHS last week. There was some confusion with the invitations, and they were hit and miss at best. However, Rick and I both did receive invitations a week or two before the event and we were both in attendance. It was a nice event and was fairly well attended. Divelbliss Manufacturing, LIBRARY The Fredericktown Community Library is in need of replacement windows and we have gotten a $32,000 quote from Yoder Windows. The Interim Director has indicated that the Library Board is willing to split the cost of that capital improvement. OHIO PUBLIC WORKS COMMISSION This year, we applied for funding for the proposed 2025 Street Improvements, which were essentially the same as the proposed 2024 Street Improvements – replacing curb and gutter and paving East College Street and overlaying the north half of Taylor Street. I’m told that our odds of getting funding are better this year than in previous years. We have requested funding for this estimated $275,890 project, with $132,428 being requested in the form of a grant, which is less grant funding than any other Knox County agencies asked for. The Village will also request $71,731 in a zero-interest loan and the Village has agreed to contribute $71,731 out of pocket toward the project. We should know in early February whether we will get the requested OPWC funding this year. We have gone without for three years in a row, so this funding seems long overdue. PLANNING COMMISSION The Planning Commission is scheduled to meet on January 27 th, at 5 PM, to review and discuss Subdivision Regulations. SERVICE DEPARTMENT We have taken delivery of the 2025 Ford F-550 and we are currently waiting for the bed to be assembled so we can get it, along with the plow and lights installed and get it into our fleet. We also had the radiator, tires, and struts replaced on the recently purchased used ford transit van. Matt Tomspon, Service Department Foreman, personally asked me to express his gratitude toward Council for allowing the purchase of the van as it is much more efficient for him to work out of in his daily duties and we were certainly a vehicle short in our fleet. 1/2 We have taken delivery of the new Toro zero-turn mower. Barring any major accidents, this mower should last at least until 2039. W. SANDUSKY SIDEWALK IMPROVEMENTS (2027) We are currently working with KE McCartney on Stage 1 submission of the engineering and designing of the West Sandusky/Bollinger Sidewalk Improvements. This submission is due the first week of February and KEM staff says they will have this work ready for ODOT review before the deadline. There will be no local match required for the sidewalk work. This (estimated) $800,000 federally funded project will begin roughly across from Carol Drive, on West Sandusky. The new sidewalk will run west on Sandusky Street to Forest Cemetery, then cross the street around FCNB. The sidewalk will continue west to Bollinger Drive, then go north to the existing sidewalk near Bollinger Drive and Malibu Court. Several safe crossings will also be added for pedestrians to cross State Route 95 within the scope of the project. Construction of this project will likely take place in 2027. STREETSCAPE We are currently waiting for one more park bench to be delivered so it can be installed on the south side of the Park National Bank lawn, next to the dentist office. Plaques have arrived and we will be working next week to get them installed on the remaining benches. We will eventually be ordering two more trash receptacles to install in the downtown area. S. MAIN STREET/COLUMBUS RD. SIDEWALK IMPROVEMENTS (2028) With Council approval, we applied for TAP Funding for the replacement of sidewalks on both sides of S. Main Street, from Sandusky Street to Columbus Road (estimated cost is $1 million). If funding allows, the proposed new sidewalk will continue down Columbus Road and connect with existing sidewalk at Mohican Drive (estimated cost is $600,000). ODOT seemed enthusiastic about the possibility of continuing the Streetscape endeavor south on Main Street. While we have requested funding to cover Main Street and Columbus Road, we have also offered to do this project in two separate phases, if that better suits ODOT’s funding demands. UTILITIES 2025 Water Infrastructure Improvements: Acting Mayor Lanuzza and I met with a staff member from U.S. Representative Balderson’s Office to get an update on the federal funding of this proposed project. The funding has been delayed but we were told that Representative Balderson does still expect our project to be funded – just not as quickly and smoothly as we had anticipated. We are currently in the engineering and design portion of this preliminary estimated $1.8 million project and construction is anticipated to begin in the spring of 2025. The Village has agreed to provide a local share of approximately $181,000 toward the total cost of this endeavor, which will be used primarily toward the engineering and design. The Fiscal Officer has indicated that we are in a cash position with Water Fund reserves to provide this match funding out of pocket. WWTP Improvements: PW Tech came to the WWTP for a visit. We had not expected demolition and removal of the old microwave and press to cost as much as it appears that it will, and this drove up the estimated cost about $30,000 beyond what we had anticipated. We are working with USDA in obtaining a low-interest loan and possible grant monies toward this improvement. I will keep Council apprised on how this project develops over the next month. 2/2