City Council

MINUTES City of Geneva Council Meeting December 23, 2024 6:00 p.m. President John Barbo opened the Council meeting at 6:00 p.m. Roll Call – John Barbo, Robert Rosebrugh, Jeffrey Griffiths, James Baehr, William Baker, John Travis, Dana Schenk Pledge of Allegiance to the flag was said and prayer was offered by Pastor Tom Poferi, Geneva Peoples Church. Motion was made by Jeffrey Griffiths to approve the minutes of the December 9, 2024, regular council meeting, seconded by Dana Schenk. Roll call, 7 yeas, (Barbo, Rosebrugh, Griffiths, Baehr, Baker, Schenk, Travis). Motion duly passed. Presentations – None. Citizens – None. City Manager Report: West Main Street Project The contractor was unable to pave the north side of West Main Street due to weather. It was too wet to backfill. The base coat won’t happen until early spring. Aggregate is being placed to temporarily fill the gap until the paving can continue later. The city will continue to keep the road closed into April 2025. North Avenue Closure North Avenue has been closed in the section of mostly gravel. It is not possible to keep it open for safety reasons. There are no residences within this section. When the weather breaks the city will make the necessary improvements. Ashtabula County Department of Environmental Services Contract Amendment On tonight’s agenda is the agreement. The city and the county have come to an agreement on the terms and conditions. The largest being the monetary obligation for future projects and maintenance. Utilizing the engineer’s data the percentage of obligation is 35% going forward. The Aqua language was also cleaned up eliminating a lot of confusion. Fire and Emergency Medical Dispatching Agreement with Harpersfield Twp. There are no adjustments to the agreement other than a modest increase that the Township will pay for the services in 2025, 2026, and 2027. 1 Parks Master Plan RFP The city received two solid proposals. One proposal was slightly less ($33,000) than the other ($35,000). Both proposals adequately followed the detailed instructions of the RFP. Both proposals highlighted significant experience and competency. The lower cost proposal was $33,000. What put this proposal on the radar was $15,000 in ARPA funds towards the project. Kiwanis has pledged $1,000 towards the project. An additional $17,000 will need to be appropriated in 2025 from unappropriated funds. CDBG Senior Center ADA The project nearly complete, some minor adjustments to the doors are still needed. The project turned out well. The County Building Department signed off on the project on the 20th. The project came in under budget. CT Consultants, Inc. Change of Ownership CT Consultants was acquired by Verdantas LLC at the beginning of the year. CT Consultants is going away; however, it is the same people, the existing contracts and agreements remain in place. Appalachian Community Grant Program The target date for the kick-off meeting is November 9th at 3:00 p.m. The façade program is yet to come. Items for Consideration of Council Ordinance No. 3372. An Ordinance Amending the Additional Compensation for the Director of finance Effective January 1, 2025, Repealing Ordinance No. 3327, and declaring an emergency. Motion by James Baehr, seconded by Dana Schenk that the rule of law requiring certain ordinances be read at three separate meetings be waived and suspended and Ordinance No. 3372 be placed on final roll for passage. Roll call, 7 yeas (Barbo, Rosebrugh, Griffiths, Baker, Baehr, Travis, Schenk). Motion by James Baehr to declare and pass Ordinance No. 3372 as an emergency measure, seconded by Dana Schenk. Roll call, 7 yeas (Barbo, Rosebrugh, Griffiths, Baker, Baehr, Travis, Schenk). Roll call on passage, 7 yeas (Barbo, Rosebrugh, Griffiths, Baehr, Baker, Schenk, Travis). Ordinance No. 3372 duly passed. Motion was made by William Baker, seconded by John Travis to return Resolution No. 3615 to the Agenda. Roll call on passage, 7 yeas ((Barbo, Rosebrugh, Griffiths, Baehr, Baker, Schenk, Travis). Motion duly passed. Resolution No. 3615. A Resolution Authorizing the City Manager to Enter into an Amendment to the Agreement with Ashtabula County for Supply, Transmission, and Storage of Water, and declaring an emergency. Motion by Jeffrey Griffiths, seconded by Dana Schenk that the rule of law requiring certain resolutions be read at three separate meetings be waived and suspended and Resolution No. 3615 be placed on final roll for passage. Roll call, 7 yeas (Barbo, Rosebrugh, Griffiths, Baker, Baehr, Travis, Schenk). Motion by James Baehr to declare and pass Resolution No. 3615 as an emergency measure, 2 seconded by Jeffrey Griffiths. Roll call, 7 yeas (Barbo, Rosebrugh, Griffiths, Baker, Baehr, Travis, Schenk). Roll call on passage, 7 yeas (Barbo, Rosebrugh, Griffiths, Baehr, Baker, Schenk, Travis). Resolution No. 3615 duly passed. Resolution No. 3616. A Resolution authorizing the City Manager to Enter into an Agreement with Harpersfield Township to provide Fire Dispatching Services, and declaring an emergency. Motion by James Baehr, seconded by Dana Schenk that the rule of law requiring certain resolutions be read at three separate meetings be waived and suspended and Resolution No. 3616 be placed on final roll for passage. Roll call, 7 yeas (Barbo, Rosebrugh, Griffiths, Baker, Baehr, Travis, Schenk). Motion by Jeffrey Griffiths to declare and pass Resolution No. 3616 as an emergency measure, seconded by James Baehr. Roll call, 7 yeas (Barbo, Rosebrugh, Griffiths, Baker, Baehr, Travis, Schenk). Roll call on passage, 7 yeas (Barbo, Rosebrugh, Griffiths, Baehr, Baker, Schenk, Travis). Resolution No. 3616 duly passed. Resolution No. 3617. A Resolution Authorizing the City Manager to Enter into an Agreement with Behnke Landscape Architecture Services for Master Planning of Park Improvements, and declaring an emergency Mr. Griffiths stated that Behnke worked with Youngtown and has extensive experience. The $17,000 can be pulled from places in the budget. Kiwanis has pledged $1,000 and hopefully can contribute more. The community will have input. This is a valuable investment. Motion by Jeffrey Griffiths, seconded by William Baker that the rule of law requiring certain resolutions be read at three separate meetings be waived and suspended and Resolution No. 3617 be placed on final roll for passage. Roll call, 5 yeas (Barbo, Griffiths, Baker, Baehr, Schenk), 2 nays (Rosebrugh, Travis). Motion by Jeffrey Griffiths to declare and pass Resolution No. 3617 as an emergency measure, seconded by Dana Schenk. Roll call, 5 yeas (Barbo, Griffiths, Baker, Baehr, Schenk), 2 nays (Rosebrugh, Travis). Roll call on passage, 5 yeas (Barbo, Griffiths, Baehr, Baker, Schenk), 2 nays (Rosebrugh, Travis). Resolution No. 3617 duly passed. Unfinished Business – None. New Business – None. Payment of Bills: Mr. Travis inquired regarding phone stipends for the same person appearing in multiple places. Mr. Varckette will look into it. Committee Reports: Councilman Rosebrugh reported that the number of calls for Northwest Ambulance are up 300 from the year before. As of the first of the year NAD will have two squads. 3 Citizen – None. John Travis made a motion to adjourn. William Baker seconded the motion. Council meeting adjourned at 6:29 p.m. Recorded by: Phyllis Dunlap Clerk of Council _______________________________ President of Council __________________________________ Clerk of Council 4