City Council

200 South Hamilton Road City of Gahanna Gahanna, Ohio 43230 Meeting Minutes City Council Stephen A. Renner, President Brian D. Larick, Vice President Karen J. Angelou Jamie Leeseberg Nancy R. McGregor Brian Metzbower Michael Schnetzer Kimberly Banning, Clerk of Council Monday, August 1, 2016 7:00 PM City Hall A. CALL TO ORDER - Invocation, Pledge of Allegiance, Roll Call Gahanna City Council met in Regular Session on Monday, August 1, 2016, in Council Chambers of City Hall, 200 South Hamilton Road, Gahanna, Ohio. President of Council, Stephen Renner, called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Vice President of Council, Brian Larick, delivered an Invocation followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. Agenda for this meeting was published on July 29, 2016. Present 6 - Karen J. Angelou, Jamie Leeseberg, Stephen A. Renner, Michael Schnetzer, Brian Metzbower, and Nancy R. McGregor Absent 1 - Brian D. Larick B. ADDITIONS OR CORRECTIONS TO THE AGENDA - None. C. HEARING OF VISITORS - 1. SPEAKERS: Tom Tripp - 5420 Clark State Road, Gahanna, OH - Asked whether the annexation would be discussed. Council confirmed this topic is on the agenda for discussion. Tom Tripp states that this annexation is a power grab by the City and that the laws are in the favor of what the City is controlling. Residents of the township are defenseless with no opportunity to preserve the township other than to throw themselves at the mercy of Council. Tom Tripp wants to keep a rural atmosphere which would work for the betterment of all involved if the township could work with the City. He compared this situation to Licking County and Whitehall. Angelou asked City Attorney Ewald to explain annexation and the City’s role in this annexation because she has heard before that Gahanna is pursuing annexation when that is not City of Gahanna Page 1 City Council Meeting Minutes August 1, 2016 the case. City Attorney Ewald stated that in this case, the City is not annexing this project but rather it is the property owners/developers. Angelou then clarified that the City is actually not allowed to pursue land annexation and can only do so by land owners approaching the City first with such a proposal. City Attorney Ewald stated that is correct in this instance. Angelou then asked what is the difference between a JEDZ and an annexation. City Attorney Ewald stated that a JEDZ is a process approved by the voters to capture additional tax revenue for a township by borrowing that authority under the Ohio Revised Code from a municipality while annexation is a process that involes real property that is requested to be incorporated into a municipality. Angelou reiterated that she thinks this all needed to be said so that all have the same understanding because that seems to be confusing to people despite efforts to make this distinction known. She again stated that Gahanna did not seek to annex, but was instead approached by the land owners and developers regarding this land which will allow Gahanna to grow. Chairman added that the land owner has a Constitutional right to sell their property. Ray Grouper - 6427 Darling Road, Blacklick, OH - Lives on the east/west portion of the road which connects to Clark State. He and his wife are 28 year residents of the area and his objection to the land development are that the developer wants to sever Darling Road at the east/west portion, north/south portion, which would cut off the safety equipment coming from the fire department. Stated that this issue was raised to the developer and was only given a solution of a gate which would allow access. In the last 2 years, there have been about 6 or 8 emergency calls at the end of his road as he was told form emergency sources in the area. A gate with a clicker on it would cause every emergency vehicle in Gahanna, Jefferson Township, and Franklin County to need to be supplied with a clicker to gain access through the gate. If the clicker would fail at the time of an emergency request, these emergency vehicles will need to detour around for a 2-2½ extra miles. States that he, his wife, and many neighbors are elderly causing this to be an issue despite it not being one for the developer. He states that it is a matter of time until an emergency will occur needing assistance on this road. In addition, there are many red flags for this annexation, such as storm water runoff and effects to a subterranean supply. Mid-Ohio Planning made him aware that Jefferson Township as a whole has a very high water table. The developer wants to put in a lake about 400-500 ft. east of his property in a big soy bean field to collect the storm water which would then be pumped to another lake on the south side of the plan. He went on to say that the development behind his house, Kitzmiller Crossing, has storm water which is coming through so much that his neighbors’ kids can actually surf on the water for the whole length of his property. When finally reaching the storm system in Kitzmiller Crossing, the City of Gahanna Page 2 City Council Meeting Minutes August 1, 2016 water is over-spilling onto the street because the system can’t handle it. If the water is pumped from the proposed lake to another lake, where would that water be distributed? The entire farm is made of clay, except for one side portion with sandy soil according to Mid-Ohio Planning which informed him of this years ago. Ray Grouper stated that he believes the development directly behind his house, Kitzmiller Crossing, and the still being developed Woods at Havens Runs should take precedent as to what will be put up in that area. The road his property is on is safe for bikers and so on despite only being 14 feet wide with a surface of 1 inch thickness. This road, and many others in his area, have been said to be in need of being re-made due to not being made to handle heavy work or development. However, he disagrees because the developer is coming to the City thinking only of high density and their own profits. Another large concern with the annexation is that due process would call for a re-zoning for the property. Posed a question to Council as to what they would say if the developer were to state that profits can’t be made from 93 home on 62 acres, so can plans be changed to build a luxury apartment complex since so many apartment complexes seem to be in the area. This land offers a buffer to the homes that are there and reminded Council that land is an asset which can’t be recovered once asphalt is put on top. He urged Council to act responsibly and protect what land is currently there for the benefit of more than just Jefferson Township. Leeseberg clarified that Ray Grouper found Kitzmiller Crossing and Pinecrest as ideal developments and then stated that the density of this proposed project is exactly the same density as Kitzmiller. Went on to say that there have been several examples in the township of this same project density in the last 10 years and that this proposed development is not higher density because these are ranch style developments which are similar to that which are already surrounding them. Ron Brofford - 2641 Reynoldsburg-New Albany Road, Jefferson Township, OH - His property backs up to the proposed development and he is concerned about the road. While he know that development won’t be stopped, his driveway is 60' from where this development driveway is located. Already, he is unable to get out of his driveway. He challenged that Council has probably not been out to see where the street is going to go and asked Council to come out to see it for themselves. Some members of Council stated that they had been out to look at the project, but had no response to his question as to what they thought about the distance of the road to residents’ property. Ron Broffurd went on to say that Council is letting the development do what they want, that proposed road is 30' ft. from the side of his brother-in-law’s house, and that this development is unreasonable. He reiterated that nobody except for the 3 people selling their land seem to be interested in the development and that they should have City of Gahanna Page 3 City Council Meeting Minutes August 1, 2016 thought about the rest of those living in the area who were there first before selling off their property in this selfish manner. 2. Gahanna Jefferson School Board Update Daphne Moehring - Introduced the new Superintendent, Steven Barrett, and President of the School Board, Beryl Piccolantonio. Mrs. Moehring stated the school buildings are getting ready to start back up Aug. 17th. At school board on Saturday, created a position statement regarding the proposed annexation to weigh in on the facts as they are known now, which had been made available in advance to Council. Certain highlights from the "Position Statement from GJPS on the Proposed Annexation of the 63+/ acres known as Darling Road Annexation to the City of Gahanna” were worth being specifically pointed out: Background: The city is considering approval of a request from a property owner to annex 63+/ acres known as Darling Road Annexation from Jefferson Township to the City. The GJPS district has an interest in ensuring that our community has factual information about how the proposed project impacts us short term and long term. Further, more broadly, the school district would like to fully understand how the New Community Authority may impact us short term and long term. Impacts: 1) Student Population: The proposed marketing strategy of this project is to sell the new homes to “empty nesters” with a working assumption that there would not be any impact to student population. From past experience, the school district believes another scenario could play out that a number of “empty nesters” currently living in the Gahanna community may move into this new development, opening up their existing homes to new families with children that would likely take advantage of the district schools. The district uses a planning ratio of “.6 student: 1 new home” ratio to estimate new students. Using this standard planning ratio, the district would estimate an increase of 56 students. Given the variability of where new families may live, it would be very difficult to predict which schools within the district would acquire the increase. Since some of our schools are currently at capacity, it would be wise for us to conduct some scenario planning prior to a final decision on this development by the city. This approach would ensure that the decision is made with all the facts, “eyes wide open.” While you may have seen our Comprehensive Annual Financial Report that reflects different capacity numbers, those estimated City of Gahanna Page 4 City Council Meeting Minutes August 1, 2016 numbers were calculated based upon the square footage of the buildings. Thus, they do not reflect the unique programming needs of certain schools across the district such as full day kindergarten, special needs, and pre-school which essentially have us running at full capacity. For example, we currently have 8 modular classrooms on our Blacklick property. At the middle school and high school levels, while space is tight, we are meeting our needs at those levels. To ensure that the school district is effectively planning for the future, the GJPS Board of Education has recently requested for the district leaders to develop a document that better articulates our current state, along with multiple options to keep pace with growth over the next decade. 2) Financial: There are two areas of revenue impact here: First, the direct impact of increased property tax revenue and off setting expenses. Second, the indirect impact of state funding based upon composition, value, and income factors related to the district. The State funding model takes into account the wealth of a district based upon property values and annual gross income which may be a negative impact based on what was received by the State. Also, the percentage of agricultural land is a higher State receiver, so converting agricultural land into residential will be an impact upon several others. Gahanna Jeffson Schools Treasurer, Julio, provided information about the financial impact during a meeting with Mayor Tom Kneeland and Development Director Anthony Jones on July 13th which will be summarized here. As shared, we are starting with a baseline assumption of 94 homes with an average selling price of $450,000. We also recognized that there would be up to a 12 month delay from the time that a home sells, with a tax assessed value equal to the lot and builder cost only, to a fully assessed value reflective of the number that is being projected. Given those working assumptions, the full value of the tax collection would be approximately $625,000 per year, less the current tax payments that would be eliminated and replaced of $92,000 for a net collection of $533,000. Compare that figure to the cost to educate 56 students at an average cost of $11,181/year, which is $626,136. The net result would be a negative impact to the school district of $93,136. The indirect impact of state funding is more difficult to assess. One criterion of the many available is to calculate the impact of increased property value. Julio calculated a reduction of funding of approximately $154,677. The other areas that could impact the state funding are personal income in the form of average federal AGI (as compared to the other 680 districts around Ohio), and a reduction in the agricultural real valuation (because AG land is becoming residential). The current City of Gahanna Page 5 City Council Meeting Minutes August 1, 2016 state funding formula provides less money to districts with high wealth residents. While having high wealth residents is a good thing for the city overall, for the schools, even a small influx of these families could trigger a decrease in state funding to GJPS. Admittedly, the school funding formula is dated and cumbersome. Case in point, a new higher wealth property development should not negatively impact a school district. All said, the current estimates reflect a potential negative impact on the school district of approximately $250,000 per year. 3) Taxation Impact of New Community Authority: Perhaps the most impactful piece of the proposed annexation is the creation of the New Community Authority that imposes a 7 million tax assessment fee. The district has concern that the residents who will pay the 7 millions (in addition to taxes that they are already paying) to the New Community Authority may not be as willing to support additional, while necessary, tax levies. It appears that the New Community Authority described within the Darling Road Pre-Annexation Agreement may have a much bigger impact than the proposed annexation area. The DEV ATT City MI Homes Pre Annexation Agreement v7, REDLINED on page 6 describes the new community authority, and on page 7 it describes the “Required Area” that will include: “the area of land bounded by the centerline of Clark State Road on the north, the centerline of Mann Road on the west, the centerline of Havens Corner Road on the south, and the Franklin County/Licking County boundary on the east.” There is significant land to be developed within those boundaries which raises the concern that the 7 million tax burden will have much broader impact than the proposed annexation/development. Those who purchase new homes would have a legitimate argument to vote “no” on future tax levies, claiming their taxes are “too high” or higher than other voters. This could divide our community. We would like to better understand the nature of the New Community Authority and how it could affect us long term. We value our partnership with the city and the township and want to work closely with both of you to build a stronger community that is cohesive, prosperous, and forward thinking." The Mayor responded that since the school board’s document is a public record, he wanted to go on record to clarify a few things within the position paper. First, under the student population section, the potential for people to move from homes inside of Gahanna to these new homes making the Gahanna home available for others is an experience which occurs every day in Gahanna. Therefore, this is going to occur in areas that the district serves regardless of whether or City of Gahanna Page 6 City Council Meeting Minutes August 1, 2016 not these homes go in as proposed because those who are likely to move are already thinking of downsizing. Further down in the document, where 8 modular classrooms are discussed due to school overcrowding, this has happened in all of the elementary schools. Specifically discussing Blacklick, without the actual numbers, it is expected that a lot of that impact is due to the homes within the township and not necessarily the City of Gahanna. In section 2, the financial section, there is a highlighted portion stating that there will be 94 homes which is an error because there will be 93 homes. Where the tax discussion takes place, the end of that paragraph talks about how there is approximately $93,000.00 as a downside to the district which is likely due to Council originally being given a number of .5 students instead of .6. Once adjustments were made to the .6,that is where this downside number came from. The Mayor stated that over time this should normalize out after a renewal occurs due to the cycle of operating levies based upon what he has learned from discussions with the school board over the years. Regarding item 3, taxation impact of the New Community Authority, the Mayor stated that this is not a tax. This is an agreed upon fee and charge which is similar to an HOA that people sign-up for when buying a new house. It just so happens that this fee will be collected and distributed via the property tax channels. So, it is really the property owners who are proposing this and are willing to assess that on the property and once it is established, it carries like an HOA would on to the property owners. On the same point about the tax levies, on the last page, he understands concerns and acknowledges that we would need to look at what could compete with anything needing to be done by Council from a ballot perspective. However, once again, this 7million is a fee not a tax. Daphne responded that the .6 is their model and it would make no sense to change due to just this new development. The Mayor agreed. Daphne then stated that there will be a higher number of home purchases due to the 93 new homes, to which the Mayor did not disagree due to the target for these proposed homes being for empty nesters. Mayor said the new homes are not the rationale for people moving. Daphne said that she understood what the Mayor was saying but disagreed and would need to discuss the matter further with the Mayor to better articulate her point when more time was available. Jones said on page 7 of the pre-annexation agreement, the New Community Authority section, this is the same as previous agreement which requires an annexation agreement with M/I for any future developments within a “required area” also being required to have a charge of 7 million to request to come in. The developer and the City have not prepared the final version of this and would have to do so before any annexation could occur. There is a method for Council to City of Gahanna Page 7 City Council Meeting Minutes August 1, 2016 approve annexation without the documents, but as of now, they would be the next step in a pre-annexation phase. The pre-annexation agreement does not define the annexation to the Licking County line as of now, but does state that any annexation would require them to enter into the community. However, that does not require them to be in the NCA if they do not want to come to the City of Gahanna which won’t occur in most instances because of property boundaries not going that far. Leeseberg said, as reading from the CAFR, enrollment capacity of the schools is 8,000 students which may be a model based on square footage. The actual enrollment numbers from 2005-2016 have gone up by 317 students. That works out to 28.8 students per year, so still have a capacity for about 800 (757) more students. At that current rate of about 300 students in 11 years, it will take 26 years to reach full capacity despite hearing otherwise and the addition of pre-kindergarten, etc. The current discussion is on property owners who want to sell their land. Leeseberg asked if there is a charge for the pre-k. Daphne answered she did not know. Daphne said that it is their responsibility to educate and care for all children and that this actually was found to save money. Most importantly, this focuses on students that need to be ready to start kindergarten as part of special programming. Daphne said that it may help Council to understand how it works the school board works. The board is focused on facilities planning and maybe making up some lost time from what may have needed to be done in the past. Daphne said they will find a way to educate these children and that she was there to discuss the impact of the development on students. The fact is that the impact would be .6 new students multiplied by the 93 new homes being added to the district. Angelou wanted to discuss the New Community Authority in New Albany. Daphne stated that she studied the New Community Authority which benefitted the schools by paying for the middle school and high school as well as the health care center and roads leading to the schools. Angelou reiterated that it is the entire community while the issue here in Gahanna is just a small portion which is new and could also benefit our roads. Angelou wanted Daphne to be aware that this was not something which Gahanna dreamed up. Daphne stated that she had done a study on such community authorities and most of them pay for infrastructure through issue bonds and when those bonds are paid they are eliminated. However, Daphne didn’t find many in her study which were ongoing maintenance NCA. She went on to say that New Albany started at 9 million and has reduced it down to 4 million due to refinancing their debt twice. McGregor said Blacklick has a peer-modeling pre-school with typically developing City of Gahanna Page 8 City Council Meeting Minutes August 1, 2016 children who pay and untypically developing children who do not pay. Each classroom is essentially half of each. Renner stated that he fears that anyone who reads the school board’s position statement, since it is now a public document, will now think that the Gahanna Jefferson School Board members don’t want any new developments or homes inside our community. This is unrealistic and goes against the duties of Council and the Mayor and therefore he is very concerned about the school board’s statement. Gahanna has grown by about 700 and Jefferson Township has grown by about 6,200 people, so the rapid growth isn't in Gahanna. President Renner said he wanted to read something into the records. There had been an article in The Columbus Dispatch published in the morning regarding the M/I Homes project. At the end of this article, it insinuated 2 things: that Renner had called the 7 million a tax and that he had given a specific amount of revenue to the City. Neither of those insinuated items are true. He stated he had tried to inform the reporter on how and where to locate the various supporting documents on the matter. Also had made clear that the proposed assessment revenue from the NCA goes to the NCA and that Gahanna has yet to talk about the NCA and the specific relationship which would be established between it and the City. D. INTRODUCTIONS AND ASSIGNMENT TO COMMITTEE: Leeseberg introduced the Ordinances. Ordinances - To Be Introduced and Assigned to Committee: ORD-0074-2016 TO AMEND THE CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION RULES AND REGULATIONS AS RECOMMENDED TO CITY COUNCIL ON JULY 19, 2016. This Ordinance was introduced. ORD-0075-2016 TO AUTHORIZE THE MAYOR TO ENTER INTO A BARGAINING UNIT AGREEMENT FOR THE FRATERNAL ORDER OF POLICE, OHIO LABOR COUNCIL, INC (FOP-OLC) FOR THE PERIOD OF JANUARY 1, 2016 THROUGH DECEMBER 31, 2018 FOR THE POLICE RADIO DISPATCHERS. This Ordinance was introduced. ORD-0076-2016 SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATIONS - McCutcheon Park Concept City of Gahanna Page 9 City Council Meeting Minutes August 1, 2016 Plan This Ordinance was introduced. ORD-0077-2016 TO AUTHORIZE THE MAYOR TO ENTER INTO CONTRACT WITH OHM FOR A CREEKSIDE RESTORATION AND USE PLANNING STUDY; AND TO TRANSFER FUNDS. This Ordinance was introduced. ORD-0078-2016 TO AUTHORIZE THE MAYOR TO ENTER INTO LEASE AGREEMENT WITH POINT PLUS PERSONNEL FOR THE USE OF 79 S. HAMILTON ROAD. This Ordinance was introduced. ORD-0079-2016 TO AUTHORIZE THE MAYOR TO ENTER INTO A SERVICE AGREEMENT WITH MUNI-LINK. This Ordinance was introduced. ORD-0080-2016 TO GRANT A VARIANCE FROM SECTION 1143.04, SF-3 RESIDENTIAL DISTRICTS, OF THE CODIFIED ORDINANCES OF THE CITY OF GAHANNA; TO ALLOW A NON-RESIDENTIAL USE WITHIN A SINGLE-FAMILY RESIDENTIAL (SF-3) ZONING DISTRICT FOR PROPERTY LOCATED AT 79 S. HAMILTON ROAD. This Ordinance was introduced. ORD-0081-2016 TO AUTHORIZE THE CREATION OF A CAPITAL PROJECTS FUND FOR THE STATE'S COMMUNITY RECREATION PROGRAM GRANT AND IF AWARDED, THE CLEAN OHIO TRAILS FUND GRANT, RECREATIONAL TRAIL PROGRAM GRANT AND NATUREWORKS GRANT. This Ordinance was introduced. ORD-0082-2016 SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATION - Counsel-Special and Counsel-Labor City of Gahanna Page 10 City Council Meeting Minutes August 1, 2016 This Ordinance was introduced. E. CONSENT AGENDA: Minutes - To Approve: 2016-0252 July 18 Regular and July 25 Special Council Meeting Minutes These Minutes were Approved and Filed on the Consent Agenda. Ordinances on Second Reading: ORD-0071-2016 TO AUTHORIZE THE MAYOR TO ENTER INTO CONTRACT WITH ENVIRONMENTAL REMEDIATION CONTRACTOR FOR THE ACADEMY COURT CULVERT BANK STABILIZATION ST-1024. This Ordinance was Adopted on the Consent Agenda. ORD-0072-2016 TO AUTHORIZE THE MAYOR TO ENTER INTO AGREEMENT WITH CHAMPION ENERGY SERVICES, LLC FOR ENERGY SUPPLY 2018 THROUGH 2020; AND TO DECLARE AN EMERGENCY. This Ordinance was Adopted on the Consent Agenda. Postponed to Date Certain: August 15, 2016: ORD-0066-2016 TO ENACT CODE CHAPTER 914, TREE PRESERVATION, PLANTING AND REPLACEMENT, OF PART NINE, STREETS AND PUBLIC SERVICES CODE, OF THE CODIFIED ORDINANCES OF THE CITY OF GAHANNA. Postponed to Date Certain ORD-0068-2016 TO AMEND CHAPTER 1181, PERSONAL WIRELESS SERVICE FACILITIES, OF PART ELEVEN, PLANNING AND ZONING CODE, OF THE CODIFIED ORDINANCES OF THE CITY OF GAHANNA. Postponed to Date Certain Resolutions to Adopt on First Reading: RES-0024-2016 TO AUTHORIZE THE CITY TO OBLIGATE FUNDS FOR THE BIG WALNUT TRAIL, SECTION 4 PROJECT, IF AWARDED THE GRANT FOR THE CLEAN OHIO TRAIL FUND (COTF) GRANT, RECREATIONAL TRAILS PROGRAM GRANT, AND THE NATUREWORKS GRANT. City of Gahanna Page 11 City Council Meeting Minutes August 1, 2016 This Resolution was Adopted on the Consent Agenda. Motion Resolution: MR-0036-2016 MOTION RESOLUTION TO AUTHORIZE THE TRANSFER OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR CHANGES IN STAFFING, BENEFITS AND ALLOCATIONS. TRANSFER DETAIL ATTACHED AS EXHIBIT A. This Motion Resolution was Approved on the Consent Agenda. Approval of the Consent Agenda A motion was made by Schnetzer, seconded by Angelou, to approve the Consent Agenda. The motion carried by the following vote: Yes: 6- Angelou, Leeseberg, Renner, Schnetzer, Metzbower and McGregor Absent: 1- Larick End of the Consent Agenda F. PUBLIC HEARINGS: None. G. STANDING COMMITTEES: 2016-0248 Committee Minutes - July 25, 2016 Committee of the Whole - Larick No report. Finance - Schnetzer No report. Service & Safety - Leeseberg No report. Development & Parks - McGregor No report. H. CORRESPONDENCE AND ACTIONS: City of Gahanna Page 12 City Council Meeting Minutes August 1, 2016 Clerk No report. Council Angelou submitted letters from Gary Price (attached below); he wanted the Mayor to receive them as well as each member of Council, which were in fact hand-delivered. 2016-0263 I. SECOND READING OF ORDINANCES: ORD-0065-2016 TO AUTHORIZE THE MAYOR TO ENTER INTO A PRE-ANNEXATION AGREEMENT WITH M/I HOMES OF CENTRAL OHIO, LLC FOR THE FUTURE DEVELOPMENT OF A 62.3+/- ACRE PARCEL LOCATED ON DARLING ROAD SOUTH OF HANNAH FARMS SUBDIVISION. Renner read in an email received on this matter at 5:44 pm from Vice President of M/I Homes of Central Ohio, Kevin Zeppernick. It stated as follows: “Councilman Renner, We respectfully request to table our pre-annexation vote tonight in relation to our proposed Weldon project. We are aggressively addressing some new information for this project and doing everything we can to structure a true “win-win” for all parties involved. I will be in touch very soon to discuss next steps. Thank you, Kevin.” A motion was made by Metzbower, seconded by Schnetzer, that this Ordinance be Postponed to Date Certain, due back on 8/15/2016. The motion carried by the following vote: Yes: 6- Angelou, Leeseberg, Renner, Schnetzer, Metzbower and McGregor Absent: 1- Larick J. FIRST READING OF ORDINANCES: None. K. MOTIONS/RESOLUTIONS: None. L. REPRESENTATIVES: Community Improvement Corporation (CIC) - Renner/Larick City of Gahanna Page 13 City Council Meeting Minutes August 1, 2016 Larick was not present. Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission (MORPC) - Angelou Angelou reported off this month; Aug. 23, COTA banquet will be attended; next regular meeting is second Thursday of September; those interested in Insight 2050 should spread the word within the community which is later this month. Bd. of Education, Gahanna-Jefferson Public Schools - Larick/Renner No report. Convention & Visitors Bureau (CVB) - Leeseberg Leeseberg reported nothing new from last meeting; CVB is still welcoming tour groups and working toward the wedding reception; an update of classes will be provided later. M. OFFICIAL REPORTS: Mayor Mayor reported August 11 at 9 am is the Columbia Gas training facility ground breaking; there may be state and federal officials in attendance, because this will be the only such facility established in the State; working hard on development with 25 projects on the books which will create/retain about 750 jobs; these projects have the ability to produce $66 million in investments; currently have about 86 business visits this year; had two "all hands" meetings today in which collected a number of positive sticky-notes on positive feedback from the employees. City Attorney No report. N. COUNCIL COMMENT Angelou said this Thursday evening the Gahanna police are having a community conversation. The Chief of Police said this will be a conversation with the community on things happening in the U.S. and the Ohio. While we have a great relationship with the community, this discussion is to help prevent something from happening, so we should talk about it now. The meeting starts at 6 pm, but come early to meet the officers. Angelou said this is a wonderful step of progress, praying City of Gahanna Page 14 City Council Meeting Minutes August 1, 2016 nothing does happen with all that’s happened being overwhelming. Angelou thanked the Chief for taking progressive step with the community on these issues; her 50th wedding anniversary is Saturday; she thanked everyone for applause. Leeseberg echoed Angelou's comments on the meeting with the P.D. and reminded everyone that the police have a meeting the end of each month. McGregor said she will be at the Ohio State Fair on Aug. 2. Schnetzer said he would like clarification on JEDZ and that the townships initiated this idea of levying a tax via a city partner; Angelou assured Schnetzer that this is the only way it can happen; she stated that she thinks the JEDZ is no longer in existence, that it has been prohibited, but that a City must be the regulatory for a township that wants to invoke an income tax. Consequently, they cannot have an income tax because that is a city business just like water & sewer, so a township must connect to a city (which usually needs to be adjacent) to collect and distribute the tax. However, again, JEDZ no longer exist. Renner stated from a governance point of view with how things have taken place regarding the annexation development, he beleives that the City has taken important steps to inform the residents and that is has been transparent. Every property owner has a right to develop or sell their property whether in the Township or City and be assured that development is likely to happen in the future. O. EXECUTIVE SESSION - to go into Executive Session under authority of Section 5.40(c) of the Council Rules of Procedure to confer with the City Attorney concerning disputes involving the City, and/or appointed or elected officials or employees, which are subject to pending or imminent court action AND under authority of Section 5.40(b) of the Council Rules of Procedure to discuss purchase of property for public purposes or the sale of public property through competitive bidding or public auction. A motion was made by Leeseberg, seconded by Metzbower, to go into Executive Session under authority of Section 5.40(c) of the Council Rules of Procedure to confer with the City Attorney concerning disputes involving the City, and/or appointed or elected officials or employees, which are subject to pending or imminent court action AND under authority of Section 5.40(b) of the Council Rules of Procedure to discuss purchase of property for public purposes or the sale of public property through competitive bidding or public auction. President Renner requested Shane Ewald, Anthony Jones, and the Mayor attend the Executive Session. Executive Session was held in the Committee Room. City of Gahanna Page 15 City Council Meeting Minutes August 1, 2016 Council rose to Executive Session at 7:30 p.m. Council rose to report from Executive Session at 8:00 p.m. with no action taken. The motion carried by the following vote: Yes: 6- Angelou, Leeseberg, Renner, Schnetzer, Metzbower and McGregor Absent: 1- Larick P. ADJOURNMENT by Renner at 8:37 p.m. City of Gahanna Page 16