City Council

City of Groveport 655 Blacklick St. Groveport, OH 43125 614.830.2052 www.groveport.org . Meeting Minutes Monday, August 23, 2021 6:30 PM Council Chambers City Council Mayor Lance Westcamp Council Members - Jean Ann Hilbert, Ed Dildine, Shawn Cleary, Becky Hutson, Scott Lockett & John Hougland City Council Meeting Minutes August 23, 2021 I. Call to Order Mayor Lance Westcamp called the August 23, 2021 City Council meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. Staff Present: BJ King - Administrator, Kevin Shannon - Law Director, Jason Carr - Director of Finance, Casey Adams - Chief of Police, Jeff Green - Development Director, Ruthanne Sargus Ross - Clerk of Council Guests Present: The Guest Book is on file with the Clerk of Council. II. Moment of Silence The Mayor asked everyone to join him in a moment of silence. III. Pledge of Allegiance Chief Adams led the Pledge of Allegiance. IV. Roll Call Present: 6 - Shawn M. Cleary, Edward Dildine, Jean Ann Hilbert, John Hougland, Becky Hutson, and Scott Lockett V. Approval of Minutes - August 9, 2021 The August 9, 2021 City Council Minutes stand approved as submitted. #225-2021 City Council Meeting Minutes Attachments: City Council Meeting Minutes 8.9.2021.pdf VI. Business of Guests None. VII. Ordinances and Resolutions A. 3rd Readings Ord. 2021-034 AN ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING AND DIRECTING THE ADMINISTRATOR TO EXECUTE AN AGREEMENT WITH CULTIVATE FOR THE PURPOSE OF IMPLEMENTING AN ENTREPRENEURSHIP SUPPORT PROGRAM IN THE CITY OF GROVEPORT City of Groveport Page 1 City Council Meeting Minutes August 23, 2021 Sponsors: Dildine Law Director Kevin Shannon advised that staff requested Council to consider making a motion to postpone this Ordinance indefinitely. Council Member Dildine noted that he recommended postponing this item indefinitely with the intent of coming back to Council with a different proposal by working with Cultivate. He does not want the City to miss out on the opportunity to create and grow new businesses. Even without the new buildings, the City has the space now at the Municipal Building, the Recreation Center, Senior Center, the Golf Course, and Town Hall. The hope is to come back with something that works for the City, Council, and the community as a whole. Clerk of Council Ross read by title Ordinance No. 2021-034. A motion was made by Council Member Dildine, seconded by Council Member Hilbert, to postpone indefinitely. The motion carried by the following vote: Yes: 6- Cleary, Dildine, Hilbert, Hougland, Hutson and Lockett B. 2nd Readings None C. 1st Readings Ord. 2021-042 AN ORDINANCE APPROVING THE FINAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN FOR 0 HAMILTON ROAD, BOBBY SYKES, APPLICANT, (PARCEL NUMBER 185-001164) Sponsors: Dildine Attachments: Ord. 2021-042 Exhibit A.pdf Ord. 2021-042 Exhibit B.pdf Clerk of Council Ross read by title Ordinance No. 2021-042. This Ordinance was referred to the Planning & Zoning Commission. Ord. 2021-043 AN ORDINANCE APPROVING THE FINAL PLAT FOR 5740 GREEN POINTE DRIVE N, FED ONE DUBLIN, LLC, APPLICANT, (PARCEL NUMBER 185-002202) Sponsors: Hougland Attachments: Ord. 2021-043 Exhibit A.pdf Clerk of Council Ross read by title Ordinance No. 2021-043. This Ordinance was referred to the Planning & Zoning Commission. City of Groveport Page 2 City Council Meeting Minutes August 23, 2021 Ord. 2021-044 AN ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING THE ADMINISTRATOR TO APPLY FOR AND ACCEPT A GRANT FROM THE MID-OHIO REGIONAL PLANNING COMMISSION FOR THE COLUMBUS URBANIZED AREA FEDERAL TRANSIT ADMINISTRATION (FTA) FUNDING FROM THE ENHANCED MOBILITY FOR OLDER ADULTS AND INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES PROGRAM (SECTION 5310), AND FURTHER AUTHORIZING THE ADMINISTRATOR TO EXECUTE ANY AGREEMENTS NECESSARY TO RECEIVE SAID GRANT FUNDING, AND THE DECLARATION OF AN EMERGENCY Sponsors: Hutson Law Director Kevin Shannon advised that staff requested Council to consider making a motion to suspend the rules as to the three readings and the effective date to enable the City to meet the timelines set forth to receive the grant. Clerk of Council Ross read by title Ordinance No. 2021-044. A motion was made by Council Member Hutson, seconded by Council Member Lockett, to suspend the rules as to the three readings and the effective date. The motion carried by the following vote: Yes: 6- Cleary, Dildine, Hilbert, Hougland, Hutson and Lockett A motion was made by Council Member Hutson, seconded by Council Member Lockett, to adopt as emergency legislation. The motion carried by the following vote: Yes: 6- Cleary, Dildine, Hilbert, Hougland, Hutson and Lockett VIII. Reports A. Mayor - Lance Westcamp Mayor Lance Westcamp noted the incident that took place in Groveport on Saturday evening. He commended Chief Adams and the two sergeants that were on duty. It could not have worked out any better. The communication was the best he witnessed over the years. Thanks to Administrator BJ King, who kept the Mayor and Council informed throughout the entire ordeal. He gave accolades to Chief Adams and all the individuals he brought in for a bad situation that ended pretty well. B. Administrator - BJ King Administrator BJ King praised the Police Department for a great job City of Groveport Page 3 City Council Meeting Minutes August 23, 2021 done on Saturday's incident. It was great to see two of the City's new sergeants get thrown into that position who stepped up to keep things safe. Mr. King shared the census numbers that came out this weekend. The City now has a population of 6,009 residents per the 2020 Census. Mr. King explained a laydown yard is where a company will put equipment and materials to build an actual site. (A laydown yard is for construction equipment and materials only. It is different from a contractor storage yard in that all items are in active use on off-site projects. It is not a substitute for a contractor storage yard.). #226-2021 Admin report to Council Attachments: Admin report to Council August 23 2021.pdf C. Chief of Police - Casey Adams Chief Casey Adams praised Sergeant Guiler and Sergeant Westhoven for their handling of the situation on Saturday. The communication during the incident was excellent. By the time Chief Adams was on-site, everything was in place with the Columbus SWAT Team in route. Our Groveport detectives were filing warrants as the Chief was pulling up to the scene. The two sergeants will work with Lieutenant Short and Chief Adams on an after-action report. The report will allow the Department to learn what works well, what to do better, and what training officers need to help in these incidents. Columbus SWAT did an excellent job. The only injury was prong markings from a taser sustained by the individual police apprehended. After treatment and release from the hospital, the perpetrator went to jail to face one felony charge with possible additional felony charges. Everyone's quick response and the excellent team effort from Groveport Police, Madison Township Police, Madison Township Fire Department, Columbus Fire Department, and Columbus Police Department brought the matter to an innocuous conclusion. The City is very fortunate that at 5:40 p.m. on a hot Saturday that the incident ended with no one seriously injured or injured at all. Off-duty Groveport officers came to help. The City's street crew immediately shut down the bike paths and roadways leading in and out of Elmont Place. When such a situation warrants, Section 737 of the Mutual Aid Pact with other agencies allows Groveport to call upon them and those agencies to request aid from Groveport. Groveport Madison School District started classes last week. Officer Kurt Boso is donning his new uniform (he likes the gray and royal blue City of Groveport Page 4 City Council Meeting Minutes August 23, 2021 shirts). Last week, there was an incident at the High School involving the Madison Township SRO, who is now back to work. Officer Boso is visiting the schools south of US 33. Lieutenant Short receives positive feedback from the principals and school staff about Officer Boso's presence in the schools. The traffic coming out of the Groveport Charter School on South Hamilton Road at Venture Place resulted in two auto crashes on the first day of school. Administrator King, Chief Adams, City Engineer Farst, and Madison Township Fire Marshall Hite discussed the public safety issue of the intersection. The Chief will set up a meeting with the schools to address the matter and discuss possible solutions. D. Director of Finance - Jason Carr Finance Director Jason Carr informed Council that the City received its liability insurance renewal premium through the Central Ohio Risk Management Association (CORMA). The City is looking at a 4.4% increase, around $149,000, which is reasonable when you look back at prior years. The flood zone deductible through the plan is $250,000. The Groveport Recreation / Aquatic Center is separate because it sits in a flood zone. The deductible for the Recreation Center is $500,000. Other changes: · the property deductible is lower from $200,000 to $100,000 · the inland marine (equipment) deductible increased from $5,000 to $25,000 There were no other significant changes to the policy. Last week, Mr. Carr provided the Financial Report with the Committee of the Whole reports. He added summary highlights at the front of the information. Mr. Carr welcomes any suggestions from the Council of changes or ideas to make the document more user-friendly. E. Director of Law - Kevin Shannon Law Director Kevin Shannon had nothing further to report. F. Development Director - Jeff Green Development Director Jeff Green reported that staff started looking into firms to perform a feasibility study for Area “C.” The cost of infrastructure and revenue sharing with Columbus and the School District are two factors that need consideration to decide if it would be City of Groveport Page 5 City Council Meeting Minutes August 23, 2021 worth moving into Area “C.” The City needs to keep development going; developers are knocking at the doors every week. Mr. Green emphasized the City wants to go after economic development, not just any development. The City needs to look at what land to develop, how much revenue it will generate, the City’s cost to open up that land, and how much of the revenue Groveport will share. Then conclude if the City wants to attempt to develop Area “C.” Mr. Green thinks the City has to be responsible in the way it looks at economic development. He is aware there is some warehouse fatigue in the community, but it pays the bills. The City needs to do whatever is possible. Right now, there are no vacancies or very few vacancies. Groveport needs to pay someone to take a scientific look at Area “C.” Wherever Groveport looks to expand now will require an agreement with Columbus. Groveport is landlocked to the north, east, and west. South is the only way to go for growth. The talk on social media claims Groveport has a lot of empty warehouses. Mr. Green clarified that the vacancy rate in Groveport’s warehouses is less than 5%. That talk is a misnomer that has been around for a long time. It is simply not true. Otherwise, Groveport wouldn’t have developers coming at it the way they do. The market is hot right now. Today, the Tax Incentive Review Council looks for compliance within CRA and TIF Districts. The employment just within the abated buildings, (the abatements are falling off left and right; six fell off in 2020;) is close to 5,000 jobs. That doesn’t include the GAP and other large companies, nor the employment with the school district. People are always going to say buildings are sitting empty. There are real estate signs posted, but those advertise for fractions of buildings. The small spaces can be hard to fill because companies want 600,000, 700,000, and 800,000 square foot structures. Social media also claims that once an abatement runs out, that company moves out. In the 20 years Mr. Green has been with Groveport, this has happened only once. The company was Med Line; once they moved out, Hyundai moved in and is still there. The general public doesn’t realize that it is not easy for large companies to pack up and move. Companies don’t chase abatements; many factors go into locating a business. Groveport doesn’t get any companies from its surrounding communities looking for a tax abatement. StarTech built a new structure in Groveport because it ran out of space at its former location in Obetz. Groveport needs to concentrate on the businesses it has now to make sure the companies stay in Groveport. Distribution centers make up a large part of Groveport’s warehouse tenants. Logistics is the City of Groveport Page 6 City Council Meeting Minutes August 23, 2021 biggest reason why most of these companies are here. Groveport’s location enables companies to reach two-thirds of the United States population and a good portion of the Canadian population. Groveport has access to highway infrastructure and did have available land. Back in the 1970s Council had the foresight to create CRAs, which have contributed a lot. Now we are at the end of CRAs as we know them. Now they are post 94 CRAs, and municipalities will have to negotiate them. That is where the compensation agreements come in now. Cities will expect developers to step up to the plate and pay their fair share as well. Council Member Dildine wants that information readily available on the City’s website. He wants the public to know that Groveport has a low vacancy rate. Businesses are not leaving after the abatement runs out. The companies have created nearly 6,000 jobs. When the City reaches the point where the growth won’t happen anymore, as the Mayor said, staff has to concentrate on keeping the businesses here. If Area “C” does not work for new development, the City will have to look for growth in a new direction. G. Council Members - Jean Ann Hilbert, Ed Dildine, Shawn Cleary, Becky Hutson, Scott Lockett and John Hougland Council Member Hutson was thankful for Groveport Police and other agencies' handling of Saturday's shooting incident and the fight at the High School. Mrs. Hutson mentioned that she checks other municipalities' websites often, probably daily. Many sites change pretty often with information, scrolling pictures, and things of that nature. She wants the City to add updated information on the available spaces in warehouses and the City's warehouses' low vacancy rate to put the assumptions to rest. The residents need to know that the social media talk is incorrect or misleading. Council Member Dildine wants to see as much information as possible on the front page of the City's website to direct people to the information they want to know. The easier the front page is to navigate, the better for the public to get what they are seeking. Council Member Cleary let Chief Adams know, with the past week's events, get with the Administrator and Finance Director if anything is needed from this Council with the upcoming budget. On Saturday, Administrator King called Chief Adams to ask what he needed from him. Mr. King called Council, the Mayor, and Law Director Kevin Shannon to keep them apprised of the situation. Chief Adams appreciated the support; it allowed him to concentrate on the media and his officers to ensure the incident ended safely. Mr. Cleary City of Groveport Page 7 City Council Meeting Minutes August 23, 2021 interjected to remember the dispatcher; officials often ignore the dispatchers when praising the team effort. Council Member Dildine announced the 911 ceremony at Motts Military Museum. The event will start at 8:45 a.m. and follow the actual timeline of the events of that day. People are encouraged to stick around at the end to visit the 911 exhibits and chat with the speakers. All four speakers worked at Ground Zero on September 11, 2001. Two guest speakers, Captain and Lieutenant, are from New York City. Another speaker is from Arizona and the fourth lives on Hayes Road. Groveport Madison School Choir will perform the National Anthem. A Groveport graduate and a Pickerington Graduate will play taps on bugles. Groveport Police will provide the 21 gun salute, Madison Township Fire Department will serve as the honor guard, and local gentlemen will play the bagpipes. H. Clerk of Council - Ruthanne Sargus Ross Clerk of Council Ruthanne Ross had nothing further to report. I. Standing Committees None. IX. Other Business Administrator BJ King requested the Council to consider making a motion to waive Chapter 933.08(B) of the Groveport Codified Ordinances related to private fire suppression services to buildings to be metered separately from domestic water service. This request refers to the email previously sent to City Council from Jeff Green regarding the construction of the City's two new buildings. A motion was made by Council Member Hilbert, seconded by Council Member Dildine, to waive Chapter 933.08(B) of the Groveport Codified Ordinances related to private fire suppression services to buildings to be metered separately from domestic water service regarding the construction of the City's two new buildings The motion carried by the following vote: Yes: 5- Cleary, Dildine, Hilbert, Hutson and Lockett No: 1- Hougland City of Groveport Page 8 City Council Meeting Minutes August 23, 2021 X. Adjournment A motion was made by Council Member Hilbert, seconded by Council Member Hougland, to adjourn at 7:12 p.m. The motion carried by the following vote: Yes: 6- Cleary, Dildine, Hilbert, Hougland, Hutson and Lockett __________________________________________ Lance Westcamp, Mayor __________________________________________ Ruthanne Sargus Ross, CMC Clerk of Council PLEASE NOTE: THESE MINUTES ARE NOT VERBATIM. A RECORDING OF THE MEETING IS AVAILABLE IN THE CLERK'S OFFICE DURING REGULAR BUSINESS HOURS. City of Groveport Page 9