City Council

200 South Hamilton Road City of Gahanna Gahanna, Ohio 43230 Meeting Minutes City Council Stephen A. Renner, President Trenton I. Weaver, Vice President Karen J. Angelou Merisa K. Bowers Nancy R. McGregor Kaylee Padova Michael Schnetzer Jeremy A. VanMeter, Clerk of Council Monday, March 6, 2023 7:00 PM City Hall, Council Chambers A. CALL TO ORDER: Invocation, Pledge of Allegiance, Roll Call Gahanna City Council met in Regular Session on Monday, March 6, 2023, in Council Chambers. President of Council Stephen A. Renner called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Vice President of Council Trenton I. Weaver delivered an Invocation and led members in the Pledge of Allegiance. The agenda for this meeting was published on March 3, 2023. Present 7 - Karen J. Angelou, Merisa K. Bowers, Nancy R. McGregor, Kaylee Padova, Stephen A. Renner, Michael Schnetzer, and Trenton I. Weaver B. ADDITIONS OR CORRECTIONS TO THE AGENDA: None. C. HEARING OF VISITORS: 1. Resolution Presentation by Council Councilmember Bowers introduced Christy Evans and Kari Hawk as Council’s honored guests and recipients of the Women’s History Month Resolution. Evans and Hawk are very familiar faces around Gahanna. They are incredible volunteers not just with the Historical Society but across the City in general. Bowers explained that with the Women's History Month Resolution having the theme of “celebrating women who tell our stories” Bowers thought it was particularly relevant to tell the stories of two of our greatest historians and storytellers in Gahanna. Evans and Hawk have been lifelong residents. Evans developed an interest and a passion in uncovering the history of the Big Walnut Country Club. This interest led to her uncovering personal stories about patrons and children and members of the country club, which resulted in the formation of the Vision Committee for the Big Walnut Country Club and bringing to fruition the first historical marker in the City of Gahanna. Bowers congratulated and thanked Evans for this significant contribution to the City. Hawk’s parents moved to Gahanna in the early 1970s. City of Gahanna Page 1 City Council Meeting Minutes March 6, 2023 They both had job opportunities here and recognized that Gahanna was going to be a great place to raise a family and pursue career opportunities. She went to school at Royal Manor and then spent some time both at Middle School West and Middle School East before graduating from Gahanna Lincoln High School. She was a member of the high school track team, earning a varsity letter for her service. Ms. Hawk, and her husband Dwayne, continue to work for Gahanna Schools. They are very much in service to students and to all the staff within the school district. They are also proud parents of two children who have carried on their parents’ passion for community service. Bowers shared that when she asked Hawk why she was so motivated and passionate about preserving Gahanna's history, Hawk stated she is a cancer survivor with 22 years of being cancer-free. She wakes up excited every day to share and to remember what brings us here and why. Hawk is fascinated by the stories she has been able to uncover and share to our youth. She is particularly motivated by how hard people work to give us all that we have. The abundance that we are able to enjoy today is through the sacrifice and the dedicated work of those who came before us. Bowers and fellow members of Council joined together with applause and congratulations to Evans and Hawk. Bowers noted that Evans’ and Hawk’s contributions are on permanent display on the second floor of the new Gahanna Branch where we have dedicated history space with prominent displays of the Big Walnut Country Club. President Renner said he had always heard references about back in the day when rail was going down Broad Street to Gahanna. He had never seen evidence of that being in Gahanna until he saw the history exhibit at the new library. There is a picture of the trolley on the rail right by the bridge. He was happy to see that. This is another piece of our story that we need to talk about. 2. Members of the Public Tim McClurg of 935 Leaflock Ct, Gahanna, OH spoke on topics of water bills, senior citizen programming, and Gramercy Park. Mr. McClurg explained that he went to Florida for a month and when he got back, he received his water bill. He had not used any water. He turned it off because he did not want to have a flooded basement. There was no water coming in. The bill showed zero for water and zero for sewer, but there was still a thousand-gallon charge for water. McClurg thinks it is a minimum charge. He is sure we have a lot of residents that probably are snowbirds that go down to Florida for three- or four-months and end up paying for water that they are really not using. McClurg wanted to bring that to Council’s attention. McClurg said he received the bulletin for Parks & Recreation for what is going on in the spring. He has not noticed anything in there about expanded Senior Center hours. He thinks the Senior Center is open to anybody either age 50 or 55 and older. He stated there are people who are 50, 55, 60, or 65 that are still working. They cannot do any of the stuff that [the Senior Center] does during the day. He would like to do some of the things at night that they maybe do during the day, such as a euchre event, a Wii party, or just get to know City of Gahanna Page 2 City Council Meeting Minutes March 6, 2023 people. McClurg said there ought to be some programming at night. He thought we would have some of that once getting past COVID-19. McClurg said maybe he needs to take this to the Parks & Recreation Board. Lastly, he said he noticed a beautiful pine tree in Gramercy Park right across the way on Hamilton Road. It is a gorgeous natural Christmas tree. He always wondered why the City does not decorate it. He did some research and found out that a women's club used to decorate it until it got too tall for them to work on it. It was dangerous for them to use ladders to get up that high. Was there anything where the City could use cherry pickers to help those ladies or have the City’s Parks & Rec team decorate it? It is on a main thoroughfare into our city. McClurg thinks it would be a great display. Mayor Jadwin responded the City will need to look into the water bill issue and circle back with Mr. McClurg. For the expanded Senior Center hours, Jadwin said administration will talk to the staff. With regard to the tree, Jadwin noted she saw McClurg had previously posted that on Facebook. She said she reached out to the Parks & Recreation Department right around the holidays. They looked into it. There is no electric there if they were to decorate the tree. Jadwin does not know what they used to do in the past, such as possibly connecting it to somebody's residence in the area. Due to the lack of electric, this was why the City did not do that during the holidays. She said the City can explore other opportunities going forward. McClurg thanked Jadwin. He reiterated he thought it would be beautiful to decorate and enhance the area during the holidays. John Petrick of 712 Fleetrun Ave, Gahanna, OH spoke on the issue of parking on his street. Mr. Petrick said Council knows that he is usually before Council to talk about parking. He said about the fifth house up on the street there is an oil slick. With the car parked there, it is terrible looking. Petrick knows we try to beautify our city, but this area was just paved about two years ago and already it looks bad. Something has to be done with that car parked there. Petrick said he cannot believe that the person cannot see what his vehicle is doing to the road. He clarified that one cannot miss the big black mark going down the street. Petrick asked if there was a fine that could be given or make the person clean it up. The person ought to notice that there is something that has to be done. Petrick said he noticed the sweeper went down the street there and you could see where it is going between the cars. There is no debris in the middle. It is all in the sides of the gutters. The sweeper cannot do the gutters because the cars are parked there. If you come around a turn, you will see where the water backs up when it rains hard. This is due to all the leaves from the fall. Petrick asked for all to beautify the city and keep the streets clean. Petrick stated he was going down by Landover and halfway through it, a car comes the other way, and it was barely enough for them to get through. He said that car had to ride in the gutter because of the cars that are parked there. They have places to park behind the building. Petrick says he thinks the vehicle owners do not pay property taxes, yet they are parked on a street. It is not a parking lot. It is a street. Petrick added that nowadays there are more kids graduating, more kids getting driver’s licenses, and more City of Gahanna Page 3 City Council Meeting Minutes March 6, 2023 parents buying more cars. Petrick said if you look where these cars are on the street, their driveways are wide open. Why does the City not put signs up or something? If you have room in a driveway, you should have to park in a driveway. Petrick said he can see reasons for overnight or something like that, but if an ambulance or big fire truck has to get up there, somebody is going to die or a house is going to burn. Petrick does not think the City wants that. He stressed that something needed to be done about the parking. He reiterated the need to beautify our city. President Renner thanked Mr. Petrick. With respect to the oil, if it is going down the gutter, it is against the law. It is against the law for anything to get into our storm sewer and going out to the waters of the state. Mayor Jadwin responded that Petrick stopped by or had called her office earlier. She spoke to Lieutenant Moffitt. He is going to check out that vehicle and see what is going on. Renner thanked Petrick for bringing this up. Ryan Spak of 211 Carlin Ct E, Gahanna, OH spoke on comments from the February 13, 2023, Committee of the Whole. Mr. Spak said he had been at Council a couple times to speak his mind, as well as speak with a couple members of Council individually. He said he very much appreciated Council’s time and insights. For the most part, Spak said he planned on not saying much for a little while, but then he saw the video of the February 13, 2023, Committee of the Whole meeting. There was something that immediately jumped out to him. It did not seem like anyone else really picked up on it. The comment that he is referring to was made by Director Schultz when he was talking about the new building at Tech Center Drive. [Schultz] talked about the amenities of the property and then went on to talk about the challenges. Spak said the first thing [Schultz] did was draw a big red arrow from the driveway at the street to the front of the building. Spak said Schultz’ words were, “We've been discussing some of the issues and challenges we have with the site. The example that you see on the screen and the red arrow is that big old laneway that is basically probably a 60 mile per hour runway right into the front of the building.” Spak said this comment is frustrating to him for two reasons. First, at the public input meeting for this building, Spak said he pointed out that the building does not meet our development guidelines and our recently adopted land use guidelines. Because of that, it is just not very friendly to people outside of cars. Spak stated that we want developers to follow these guidelines and make our city a better place, but the minute it was financially advantageous for us, we immediately abandoned them. That is the example we have set for the conviction in our guidelines. Spak noted that the response that he got at that meeting was that, in fact, the building cannot be immediately adjacent to the road because a car could hop the curb and hit the police station. That is a safety issue. Now, here we are a couple months later in this meeting being told that the building is set so far back from the road that a car can enter the parking lot and accelerate and hit the police station. That is a safety issue. Spak said it is really starting to seem like the police station is just going to be this “Goldilocks” building that is going to support whatever narrative is convenient at the time. Spak has a much bigger problem. He said this is City of Gahanna Page 4 City Council Meeting Minutes March 6, 2023 where he starts going from being frustrated to being angry. He said the issue that Director Schultz pointed out is the exact same issue that Spak pointed out every time that he has stood up here, and that is how you design and build a facility directly impacts how safe and usable that facility is. When you give someone wide, flat, straight pavement, they can use that area for dangerous behavior. When Spak talks about this in the context of our streets, the conversation seems to immediately go one way: that, for the most part, we agree with you but there are so many challenges. There is the challenge of cost. There is the challenge of public pushback when you want to change a road. There is the question of is this really a valid concern or is this just your perception? Maybe we need to do a speed study and find out. When Director Schultz raised these issues, there was zero concern about cost or public perception. There was zero question of whether this was a valid safety issue. It seems like it was just accepted as this obvious issue that needs to be fixed. Spak said, for reference, the pavement that Director Schultz was talking about is approximately 25 feet wide. The pavement at Creekside, where we want a large pedestrian presence is 32 to 40 feet wide. The pavement by the high school, where we force children to be in the roadway, is 65 to 90 feet wide. The pavement at the end of his block, a residential street, is 36 feet wide. That is almost 45 percent wider than the 60 mile per hour runway Director Schultz was talking about. Spak said he did not know how many cars have tried to ram the City’s police station recently, but he does know by the City's own data that people drive in excess of 50 miles per hour on his residential road. At 50 miles per hour, if a car loses control, it is going right over the curb and right over the sidewalk, the very sidewalk that he and his family use to walk to the park. At 50 miles per hour, statistically, he said his family has less than a 10 percent chance of walking away from that. Spak understands there are practical limits to what we can do and that we cannot just snap our fingers and undo all the bad decisions that have been done in the past. He understands that there are competing interest for public space. He said that we are going to rationalize this building by saying that it is just what we have to do to meet code, but at the end of the day, a fundamental truth is being revealed here. When this building required an expedited schedule, Council adapted its policies and procedures to make sure it happened. When this building did not meet its development guidelines, we just ignored them. When this building presented a safety issue that is ubiquitous in our city and so challenging to address anywhere else, we are going to pay millions of dollars to fix it in a parking lot without a second thought. Spak said what he learned from that meeting was 1) the City understands what the issue is, 2) the City can identify the issue, and 3) the City can fix it if it wants to. At the end of the day, the only conclusion that he can reach is no matter what gets said, the safety of his family walking to the parking lot or walking to the school is apparently of less concern to this City than the safety of the front door of its new building because the City found a way to get that one done. Spak stated that if standing up here and saying that offends Council, then good because it is shameful and maybe this should be a moment of reflection for what our priorities really are. He said if right now, you are sitting there thinking that what he is saying does not accurately reflect the values of our community, great, but do not bother telling him that. Show him what Council has done that proves him wrong. He said he was watching what Council was doing. City of Gahanna Page 5 City Council Meeting Minutes March 6, 2023 President Renner thanked Mr. Spak. He noted that he had invited Spak to join the City’s various committees and commissions. He still extends that hand out to Spak. Renner would like Spak to talk to the administration. There is a process for everything. It is not being ignored. D. CONSENT AGENDA: 1. Minutes - To Approve: 2023-0035 COTW Minutes 2.13.2023 The minutes were approved on the Consent Agenda. 2023-0036 FIN Minutes 2.13.2023 The minutes were approved on the Consent Agenda. 2023-0041 CN Minutes 2.20.2023 The minutes were approved on the Consent Agenda. 2. Motions: MT-0007-2023 A MOTION AUTHORIZING THE CITY OF GAHANNA'S PARTICIPATION IN THE SOUTHWEST OHIO PURCHASERS FOR GOVERNMENT (SWOP4G) ROAD SALT COOPERATIVE BID FOR THE 2023-2024 WINTER SEASON. The Motion was approved on the Consent Agenda. MT-0008-2023 A MOTION AUTHORIZING THE DIRECTOR OF ENGINEERING TO FORMALLY BID CONTRACT FOR THE 2022 SIDEWALK MAINTENANCE PROGRAM The Motion was approved on the Consent Agenda. 3. Resolutions: RES-0007-2023 A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE CITY OF GAHANNA TO JOIN THE CENTRAL OHIO RISK MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATION (CORMA) AND ENTER INTO AGREEMENTS AS NEEDED The Resolution was adopted on the Consent Agenda. RES-0008-2023 A RESOLUTION AMENDING AND ADOPTING THE 2022 SIDEWALK MAINTENANCE PROGRAM AREA City of Gahanna Page 6 City Council Meeting Minutes March 6, 2023 The Resolution was adopted on the Consent Agenda. RES-0009-2023 A RESOLUTION DETERMINING THE NECESSITY TO REPAIR OR REPLACE SIDEWALKS IN THE 2022 SIDEWALK MAINTENANCE PROGRAM AREA FOR THE CITY OF GAHANNA The Resolution was adopted on the Consent Agenda. RES-0010-2023 A RESOLUTION RECOGNIZING MARCH 2023 AS WOMEN'S HISTORY MONTH FOR THE CITY OF GAHANNA The Resolution was adopted on the Consent Agenda. 4. Ordinances for Second Reading: ORD-0008-2023 AN ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATIONS - General Fund Wages and Professional Services The Ordinance was adopted on the Consent Agenda. ORD-0012-2023 AN ORDINANCE TO ACCEPT WARRANTY DEEDS AND DEEDS OF EASEMENT ASSOCIATED WITH THE CITY OF COLUMBUS ROADWAY IMPROVEMENTS FOR THE HAMILTON ROAD PHASE A PROJECT The Ordinance was adopted on the Consent Agenda. End of Consent Agenda A motion was made by Angelou, seconded by Schnetzer, to Pass the Consent Agenda. The motion carried by the following vote: Yes: 7- Angelou, Bowers, McGregor, Padova, Renner, Schnetzer and Weaver E. ORDINANCES FOR INTRODUCTION / FIRST READING: ORD-0011-2023 AN ORDINANCE TO ACCEPT EASEMENTS OF 0.011 +/- ACRES FOR GENERAL UTILITY, 0.093 +/- ACRES FOR ADDITIONAL RIGHT-OF-WAY, 0.189 +/-ACRES FOR SANITARY SEWER, AND ACCEPT PUBLIC SANITARY SEWER IMPROVEMENTS ASSOCIATED WITH THE ALDER PARK DEVELOPMENT AT THE INTERSECTION OF MORRISON ROAD AND WATERBURY COURT President Renner introduced the Ordinance and read it by title. ORD-0013-2023 AN ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATIONS - Damage to City Property President Renner introduced the Ordinance and read it by title. City of Gahanna Page 7 City Council Meeting Minutes March 6, 2023 ORD-0014-2023 AN ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATIONS - Water Meter Fees President Renner introduced the Ordinance and read it by title. ORD-0015-2023 AN ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATIONS - Reduction in Capital Improvement Fund and Increase in State Capital Grant Fund President Renner introduced the Ordinance and read it by title. F. CORRESPONDENCE AND ACTIONS: 1. Clerk - none. 2. Council - none. G. REPRESENTATIVES: 1. Community Improvement Corporation (CIC) - Renner, Weaver President Renner noted the CIC met on Tuesday, February 21 at 8:00 a.m. in the Committee Room. The CIC has held meetings with tenants and businesses in the Creekside area to discuss the status of the proposed Creekside project. They reviewed the status of the contract with the proposed developer and opted to extend the letter of interest until the end of April. CIC continues to evaluate candidates for an open board seat. Chair Betty Collins has asked the board to look into the future as to what the CIC’s next objectives, mission, and goals should be. Renner noted Mayor Jadwin and Collins also talked about a need to focus on workforce development. The meeting ended just after 9:00 a.m. 2. Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission (MORPC) - Angelou 2023-0040 Angelou MORPC Report to City Council 3.3.2023 Councilmember Angelou noted that her report looks a little different this time. As there have been so many things that MORPC is doing, she wanted members to be able to have this information in one location. This is the report attached to the agenda. Members can look at this for updates in lieu of reading aloud all of the items to share about MORPC. Angelou said she has been sending all of Council, the Mayor, City Attorney, Clerk of Council, and Deputy Clerk of Council all of her updates through email. She was not sure if everyone got them. The point of these emails was to keep everyone in the loop about what MORPC is doing. In talking with Clerk VanMeter, Angelou said that perhaps she could make the report work a little bit better. So, everything that the Clerk gets, he will put into this report. Because there are so many things that MORPC is doing, she said it becomes very difficult to City of Gahanna Page 8 City Council Meeting Minutes March 6, 2023 keep everything together to learn more. Regarding the CHRR survey that MORPC has in partnership with the Dispatch, Angelou noted that this was through Ohio State University. In 1965, this was known as the Center for Human Resource Research. Angelou announced that the City of Newark is joining MORPC. The upcoming MORPC Retreat includes a tour of Intel’s site. There will also be discussions on strategic framework messaging. Angelou touched on the items within the report and thanked Clerk VanMeter for his assistance. 3. Convention & Visitors Bureau (CVB) - Padova Councilmember Padova said on Thursday, March 16 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. is the Visit Gahanna annual meeting. It will be at the Gahanna Sanctuary this year and is open to the public. Tickets need to be purchased by this Friday through VisitGahanna.com. The Creekside Blues & Jazz Festival tickets went on sale last week. There is early bird pricing offered through April 15, which is $5 off per ticket. They will be bringing back for kids ages 10 and under and veterans being admitted free of charge. Sunday tickets are also going to be buy-one-get-one free. Marlow’s Cheesesteaks has been featured with articles in two local magazines recently, Columbus Monthly and City Scene, bringing some attention to Gahanna. Visit Gahanna’s website also recently received a facelift with several updates and additions, including multiple themed itineraries, which will also be included in the new visitors’ guide coming out later this month. There has also been a lot of interest in the Ohio Herb Center's classes so far this year. Many have sold out or have been very close to selling out. Topics have included journaling in the garden, the art of pressed botanicals, self-care for healthy sleep, the art of tea, and landscaping with herbs. She encouraged all to check out those opportunities at VisitGahanna.com. 4. School Board (SB) - Bowers Councilmember Bowers congratulated the Gahanna Girls Track Team for capturing the Division I indoor state title on Saturday. They defended their Division I title from last spring’s track and field season. The Gahanna Jefferson Education Foundation held a successful annual gala at the end of February at Jefferson Country Club. It was incredibly well attended. Bowers noted that Mayor Jadwin was there. It was packed shoulder to shoulder. There will be a mental health awareness program at Gahanna Lincoln High School's auditorium next week on March 13 at 7:00 p.m. Speakers from the Nationwide Children's Hospital will be there. They have an extensive new mental health wing with the Big Lots Mental Health Pavilion. There will also be speakers from the Ohio Suicide Prevention Foundation. All are welcome to attend. There will also be a Gahanna Forum on Supporting Our Youth, which is in partnership between the schools and the City, and Gahanna Police Department. This is on Wednesday, March 15 at 6:30 p.m. at the Gahanna Middle School West auditorium. H. OFFICIAL REPORTS: City of Gahanna Page 9 City Council Meeting Minutes March 6, 2023 1. Mayor Mayor Jadwin noted the city celebrated the official grand opening and dedication of the new Gahanna Branch of the Columbus Metropolitan Library. It was a phenomenal day. Jadwin shared she talked to a library representative who said he has attended every one of their grand openings, and this was by far the most well-attended event. He was quite in awe of the number of people who showed up Saturday morning and then throughout the day. She remarked that the building is absolutely beautiful. For the members of our community who have not yet had a chance to see it, the thoughtful design of the three-in-one concept thanks to Gahanna resident Michael Suriano is spectacular. Jadwin added that the historical display that Councilmember Bowers referenced earlier was amazing. She shared that she did not realize Lily Stone was an actual person. There is a picture of Lily Stone in the display. There were so many neat items on display to showcase our City’s history. The branch was a $22 million investment in our city by the Columbus Metropolitan Library System. This goes to show their dedication to our community and how much they value Gahanna. We know that obviously Gahanna values that Branch as well. On Sunday, the Gahanna Community Chorus did an encore presentation of a free concert at the high school. It was a packed house with almost 100 percent capacity. Jadwin remarked she is always amazed at the talent that we have in the City of Gahanna. She encouraged all to check out any future Chorus events. On March 7, in Council Chambers there will be a Town Hall discussion on the Comprehensive Parks Master Plan. This has been months in the making and will guide decision making on policy, operations, maintenance, and capital improvements for the Department of Parks & Recreation for the next decade. The Town Hall will begin at 6:00 p.m. and will be livestreamed for folks who are not able to make it in-person. It will be available on the City of Gahanna YouTube channel. Jadwin invited all residents to attend to learn more and to ask questions before a final draft of that plan is presented to Council in just a few weeks. The Gahanna Forum that we will be doing next week in partnership with Gahanna Jefferson Public Schools is to discuss some of the challenges that we are facing and our teens and children are facing in our community. She said the environment is much different today for them than it was for many of us when we were growing up. This will be a discussion on challenges that we are all struggling in how to deal with. As Council may recall, last summer we had to implement some changes to our pool rules in response to behaviors that our staff was seeing in patrons who were visiting the pools. We heard from staff members as to what they were experiencing. There are similar issues happening in our schools. If you watch the news or read social media, you know that it is not exclusive to Gahanna and is happening nationwide. Dr. Deagle and members of her administrative staff, Chief Spence, and the Mayor will be part of a forum discussion to talk about what we are seeing in the community, what the schools are doing, and what we can do to help address the challenges that we see with youth and best support them. Jadwin said there will be an opportunity for Q&A. This will be held 6:30 p.m. March 15 at Gahanna Middle School West auditorium. Jadwin also reminded members that the State of the City Address will be Thursday, March 23 at 825 Tech Center Drive. Doors will open at 5:30 p.m. and will run through 8:00 p.m. The City of Gahanna Page 10 City Council Meeting Minutes March 6, 2023 program will begin around 6:15 p.m. This will be a great opportunity for the community to come in and see the building beforehand and hear what we have been working on for the city and what is ahead for us as we move forward. Finally, Jadwin addressed an issue some on Council reached out to her about over the weekend. There has been a great deal of discussion on social media around a project. It is a plan for a Sheetz gas station up at the corner of Morse Road and SR 62 and the partial parcel of property in the northeast corner of our city. Jadwin wants to try to help clear up some of the confusion around that project, where it is today, and how it got to where it is today. First, the city did not pursue that project. The parcel of land in issue is owned by a private property owner. She noted we have talked a lot in Council Chambers on private property rights. When a private property owner wants to develop a parcel property, they have the right to do so, as long as it is consistent in the matter in which that property is zoned. In this case, the land that was at issue is zoned Neighborhood Commercial. Gas stations in our code are identified as a potential conditional use for that zoning area. Per the process that we have in place, a developer and the applicant applied to the Planning Commission for approval to have conditional use granted. In other words, they sought approval to have a gas station as a conditional use on that property. It was reviewed by staff. There was a public hearing held in front of Planning Commission on November 2, 2022. It is still available on YouTube. You can go back and watch it. Planning Commission, upon its review, denied the application for conditional use. That vote was six to one. They also had on the agenda that evening an application for the final development plan and the design review. Those two issues were not heard that evening because once the conditional use was denied, there was no need to hear the final development plan and design review. Following Planning Commission's decision, the applicant appealed the decision to the Board of Zoning & Building Appeals (BZBA). That appeal was scheduled for public hearing in Council Chambers and was held January 26. Jadwin knew several members of Council were in attendance that night. There was a packed house that evening. The BZBA, like Planning Commission, is comprised of Gahanna residents who are appointed to that commission. The board heard that application’s appeal. They reversed the Planning Commission's decision and granted the conditional use for that property, which means the gas station has been approved as a conditional use for that parcel. That gives them approval to build a gas station on that property. What will happen now is it will go back to Planning Commission this Wednesday to hear the final development plan and the design review that were not previously heard when Planning Commission had denied the conditional use at that hearing. Planning Commission will review the things that are set forth in the code that are basically the on-site mechanics and logistics of that project. This includes things like what materials will be used, the design of the building, how the parking lot lays out, the signage, the lighting in that area, things that are identified in code on site. What Planning Commission will not review because it is not in their purview are things like traffic. Traffic is not reviewed by Planning Commission. If the final development plan and the design review are approved, then the internal departments of the City, in this case, the Department of Engineering specifically, will review the traffic and the implications of this project in that area. Building and Zoning and Parks & Recreation for landscaping and all those other departments will be involved City of Gahanna Page 11 City Council Meeting Minutes March 6, 2023 as well. About seven or eight departments will eventually touch this project as it goes through the process. Jadwin said she knew the concerns have been around traffic, which is why she wanted to address that. This intersection at Morse Road and SR 62, as well as the Morse Road Corridor, involves multiple jurisdictions. It involves the City of Columbus. It involves Franklin County. It involves New Albany. Because of that, it is likely that the multiple other jurisdictions who have an interest in that area also will give some input as to what the traffic implications of this project are. Jadwin noted the Franklin County Engineer's Office already has reached out and expressed an interest in reviewing the traffic study that was initially done in February 2022. They want to look at what the implications are for the roundabout area because the county put a lot of money into the roundabout. Jadwin said she lives in that area and remembers how much the roundabout was needed. The City sent the county engineer’s office the earlier traffic study that was performed. The county will continue to work with the City’s Engineering Department if it is approved at Planning Commission on Wednesday night. Jadwin said she thinks there is some misunderstanding as to if the project is moving forward, what is it doing and where is it? She reiterated the gas station has been approved. That ship has sailed with the night of BZBA’s hearing on January 26. Now it is up to the actual design of that project with Planning Commission’s meeting this Wednesday. Jadwin said if Council receives any questions from residents about that to feel free to have them reach out to administration. She will help connect people to Director Schultz, Director Komlanc, or whichever director is most appropriate given their questions. Wednesday night is an opportunity for people to come and be heard. There is a public hearing on that as well, but the engineering, traffic, and those types of issues are not within the purview of Planning Commission. Those will not be discussed on Wednesday night. Jadwin thanked Council for the opportunity to walk through this project. President Renner thanked Jadwin for a very good summary of everything. This was really needed for our community. Renner said one of the complicating factors, and the Mayor pointed it out very precisely, is the millions of dollars that Franklin County taxpayers have spent on that roundabout. Another complicating factor is the discussions about a stoplight that has nothing to do with the City of Gahanna but another entity that is going to or is contemplating installing that. Can the Mayor speak to that? Jadwin said to add to what Renner just said, she believes that question came up at the Planning Commission hearing on November 2, 2022. The stoplight that is being proposed as part of the traffic study she believes is at Albany Chase and Morse Road. That is a City of Columbus stoplight. The City of Columbus signed off on that. That is not a City of Gahanna stoplight. That is why it is very important that the multiple jurisdictions that are all impacted by this are on the same page and all looking at the same thing. Jadwin added that she also believed that traffic study might have been done before the Morse Road rezoning on the acreage that is in that same locale. She did not remember to what extent, if any, of that was wrapped into the traffic study but knew that needs to be taken into consideration as well. Councilmember McGregor asked who paid for the traffic study. Mayor Jadwin said she believes it was the developer. They are typically required to do that. City of Gahanna Page 12 City Council Meeting Minutes March 6, 2023 Councilmember Angelou asked where the light is going to be. Mayor Jadwin said it is not definite but what was initially projected for the light she believes is it will be at Albany Chase and Morse Road as part of that project. That is what needs to be examined. 2. City Attorney Attorney Mularski said since Sheetz was brought up, he would like to expound a little bit on that for Council because he is sure Council is going to get some questions from people about how these things work. The Planning Commission has public comment. That is where the public comment portion occurs in these matters. When a case gets appealed to the BZBA, that is an appeal where there are parties involved. There are appellants and there are appellees. Those are the people who present the evidence. If there is any public comment given during a BZBA hearing, that is not even evidence. Mularski explained that it is not to be considered as evidence. The only evidence that BZBA can consider is what is presented by the parties, just like a court of appeals. Although, it is a board of appeals. He noted this is a very different animal than the Planning Commission. That is how that process works, though, as opposed to the Planning Commission. The only thing the BZBA can consider is they are allowed to look at what happened at the Planning Commission. He noted BZBA received a link to the actual meeting so they could look at that if they wanted, instead of just a transcript, and then they listened to the evidence as presented. There is a motion to incorporate everything that happened in the Planning Commission. Then, the BZBA takes all that into consideration, and they merely decide based upon the evidence they heard, did the appellant carry their burden of proof for the conditional use to be granted? That is what they did. They did not decide if the Planning Commission was wrong. Mularski said he hoped that helped explain a little bit more about how that process works, since it is very different from the Planning Commission that everyone is used to. He added that we do not use the BZBA very much. This most recent hearing was only the second hearing he has had in the three years he has been City Attorney. He asked if there were any questions from Council. There were none. Mularski noted that he would be absent next week for Committee of the Whole. Assistant City Attorney Matt Roth would be at the meeting to answer any questions or take notes for Mularski to follow-up on when he returns. I. COUNCIL COMMENT: Councilmember Angelou noted there were a lot of things happening in the City. The concert was wonderful. The Library opening was wonderful. Our city is becoming a really incredible place. She is very proud of it. Councilmember McGregor also said the Library opening was wonderful. It is a beautiful building. It looks so different with stuff in it compared to when Council did the hard hat tour. There was no drywall or anything at that time. The historical exhibits are really great. Ms. Hawk had all the stuff laid out in those cases. It looks really nice. Before, this was all just up on tables in the Clark House. McGregor said her favorite thing in the case is the little rings. They City of Gahanna Page 13 City Council Meeting Minutes March 6, 2023 were possibly made out of walnut. They are wedding rings that were carved by the John Ridenour while he was in the Civil War. He carved these wedding rings to have their initials on them. She encouraged everyone to take a look at these. Councilmember Bowers said that with respect to Kari Hawk’s participation on the track and field team, one will also notice in the enclosures at the Library there is a varsity letter Hawk donated. That letter was awarded to Hawk. Hawk wanted to make sure that we recognize that she loves to play the supporting role and was the manager for the track and field team in high school, which is how she earned her letter and that this is no less important than the athletes. Bowers again thanked Christy Evans for all of her work in telling the history of Gahanna. Bowers thanked Mr. McClurg for raising the need and request for expanded senior services. That is a growing trend across the region. She noted it is one that we have discussed with a regionomics professional that consults with the City and across the region on a regular basis. There is continued need to support our seniors. Bowers said she knows Mr. Weaver has been active in exploring the Villages’ model. There is a national age friendly initiative that is being discussed across the region. This is something that Bowers understands has regional awareness. The important part is making sure that it continues to remain a priority for our community. Bowers expressed her congratulations to the Columbus Metropolitan Library not just for the 150-year anniversary that we celebrated, not just for the brand-new state-of-the-art Gahanna Library Branch location, but also for the recognition by the Children's Hunger Alliance for the program of the year. The Columbus Metropolitan Library, along with many other award recipients and organizations, was recognized at this year's annual Menu of Hope event this past Wednesday. Bowers had the pleasure of being the guest of her neighbor in attending that event. The library was recognized because they ensure that young people who interact with the library are not doing so while hungry. One of the statistics that was highlighted during the Menu of Hope reception was that one in five Ohio youth are hungry. They are food insecure, which means they do not know where their next meal is coming from. Bowers noted we are seeing that play out across the region, including in Gahanna, with increased demand on our food pantries. Bowers said that as Gahanna Residents In Need (GRIN) prepares for some changes in development, it was important to note the city has other food pantries in the community. Bowers would just ask that residents continue to keep in mind the growing need and food insecurity of friends and neighbors. Finally, Bowers noted there was a significant transportation budget passed by the Ohio House this week. One of the provisions in this bill paves the way for Amtrak to connect Cleveland, Columbus, and Cincinnati. It also requires additional safety measures for trains passing through Ohio to help curb some of the infrastructure problems and relaxed safety measures that we have seen cause so many problems with two recent derailments in Ohio. This was a bipartisan bill. It was passed with both Republican and Democrat support and allocates about $2.2 billion for pavement projects across Ohio. Bowers thanked the Ohio House. The bill now goes to the Ohio Senate for continued deliberations. Councilmember Padova thanked Councilmember Bowers and Clerk VanMeter for putting together the resolution for Women's History Month. She City of Gahanna Page 14 City Council Meeting Minutes March 6, 2023 also thanked Ms. Evans and Ms. Hawk for their work in digging up and telling the stories of Gahanna's history. Padova said she was able to experience the new library over the weekend and saw Ms. Evans’ and Ms. Hawk's contributions. They were beautifully displayed. Padova also encouraged everybody to stop by and check that out along with all the other assets of the library. She remarked on the branch being a great investment in our city as the Mayor noted. Padova was not sure if she was more impressed by the beautiful design on the outside or the impeccable details on the inside. With all the community who showed up on Saturday, everywhere she looked there were people smiling and excitement on everyone's faces. It was probably the best birthday party that she attended in celebration of 150 years. Padova said she is very excited to go back and spend a lot of time there. Councilmember Schnetzer said he was also pleased to see that the new library has opened. He stated he noticed online for a couple of days there was not any ability to reserve any books. He felt like he was missing out on something. Obviously, this was understandable as they were in transit. The library is a beautiful amenity for the community. Schnetzer remembered back to when he was living in Olde Gahanna and walking to the library to use it as a study facility for some professional certifications. In some respects, Schnetzer said he owed his professional station in life to the local library. Now, his household uses it very frequently. His boys were there over the weekend getting a couple of books and DVDs. Again, this is a great amenity and community asset. Schnetzer thanked all the speakers tonight, as well as guests of honor for coming out and making time for Council. Vice President Weaver also thanked speakers during public comment. He noted that he and Council colleagues greatly appreciate public comment. It is always welcome. Weaver thanked Councilmember Bowers and Clerk VanMeter for working on the Women's History Month Resolution, and also thanked Ms. Evans and Ms. Hawk for all they do in service to our community. Weaver said he enjoyed the wonderful performance of the Gahanna Community Chorus yesterday, seeing Councilmember Bowers, Mayor Jadwin, and Councilmember Angelou also in attendance. It is nice to see the community turn out in support of a newer endeavor that is bringing joy and music, especially when live performances have been shut down for so long. He expressed a special thanks to Chorus Director Cremean and all those who were participating. There were several great events at the library. Weaver was honored to attend and see the project completed and filled with books. More importantly, he was glad to see it filled with members of the community who were getting to enjoy this impressive facility. He expressed a special congratulations to Mike Suriano, the architect of the building, as well as the Gormans and all the community partners who made the building possible. President Renner thanked Ms. Evans and Ms. Hawk for their longstanding contributions to Gahanna’s history. He said it was wonderful to play a small role in awarding both of them something. Renner thanked the public speakers tonight. He agreed that Council always appreciates when residents come and talk. Whether we like it or not or whether it is hard to hear or not, it is constructive and meaningful. The library is fantastic. He urged others to go City of Gahanna Page 15 City Council Meeting Minutes March 6, 2023 see it. As others have already addressed, it is a beautiful asset. It is something that helps position us into the 21st century. As Councilmember Padova said, it was probably one of the best birthday celebrations. Lastly, Renner noted that with the month now being March, it is the season for changing weather patterns. People want to get outside. We also are hearing that there is a lot of anxiety over some of this change. Renner simply asks for everybody in our community to just take a deep breath and listen and take a slower posture to everything. Maybe you did not hear something correctly. Maybe you are not one hundred percent right about something. He asked for people to speak in even keel tones. Renner said he is very confident that we have all the right people in our city to address things. J. ADJOURNMENT: With no further business before the Council, President Renner adjourned the meeting at 8:04 p.m. Jeremy A. VanMeter Clerk of Council APPROVED by the City Council, this day of 2023. Stephen A. Renner City of Gahanna Page 16