City Council

NEW PHILADELPHIA CITY COUNCIL MET IN REGULAR SESSION IN COUNCIL CHAMBERS ON JUNE 23, 2025 WITH PRESIDENT DON KEMP PRESIDING. MR. WALKER OFFERED A PRAYER, AND ALL IN ATTENDANCE RECITED THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE. COUNCIL MEMBERS IN ATTENDENCE MR. KRIS KREINBIHL MR. DAN LANZER MRS. CHERYL RAMOS MR. BRIAN SEARS MR. MICHAEL WALKER EXCUSED ABSENSES: MR. STEVE RIPPETH MR. TOM SIMMELINK  MR. LANZER MOTIONED TO ADD RESOLUTION 17-2025 AND RESOLUTION 18-2025 TO TONIGHT’S AGENDA FOR 1st Reading MR. WALKER SECONDED THE MOTION 5 YEAS RESOLUTION 17-2025 AND RESOLUTION 18-2025 HAVE BEEN ADDED TO TONIGHT’S AGENDA  MRS. RAMOS MOTIONED TO ADD RESOLUTION 1-2025 O TONIGHT’S AGENDA MR. WALKER SECONDED THE MOTION 5 YEAS RESOLUTION 1-2025 HAS BEEN ADDED TO TONIGHT’S AGENDA  MR. WALKER MOTIONED TO APPROVE TONIGHT’S AGENDA WITH THE ADDITIONS MR. KREINBIHL SECONDED THE MOTION 5 YEAS TONIGHT’S AGENDA HAS BEEN APPROVED  MRS. RAMOS MOTIONED TO APPROVE THE MINUTES FROM THE JUNE 9, 2025 REGULAR SESSION OF COUNCIL MR. LANZER SECONDED THE MOTION 5 YEAS MINUTES FROM THE JUNE 9, 2025 REGULAR SESSION OF COUNCIL HAVE BEEN APPROVED CORRESPONDENCE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CLERK, JULIE COURTRIGHT 1. To Councilmembers from Mayor Day, dated June 13,, 2025.. This is an email titled “Michael McInturf’s Presentation has been postponed”. Mayor Day stated that Mr. McInturf has postponed his presentation to the Planning Commission for his Master Vision Plan, because it has not yet been completed. 2. To Council and Administration from Mayor Day, dated June 19, 2025. This is an invitation to a bond issue discussion with the New Philadelphia City School Board on July 17th at 6:30 PM. 3. To Councilmembers from Mayor Day, dated June 15, 2025. This is a forwarded email from Mr. Tom Tecco of New Philadelphia. Mr. Tecco’s email is titled “Deterioration of New Philadelphia’s Old 1  Neighborhoods”. The email was replied to by Councilman Sears and Councilwoman Ramos. 4. To Council and Administration from Mayor Day, dated June 19, 2025. This is an email titled “Ratified New Phila FOP Contract”. 5. To Council and Administration from Mayor Day, dated June 20, 2025. This is an email titled “Current FOP Contract”. 6. To Council and Administration from Mayor Day, dated June 23, 2025. The Mayor’s Report. MAYOR’S REPORT/REQUESTS ….MAYOR JOEL B. DAY Mayor Day had the following report: 1 Groundbreaking and Ribbon-Cutting Ceremonies Add to July’s Festivities The annual First Town Days Festival has always made July a very special month in New Philadelphia. But this year, there are a couple of other events that will add to the festivities. On Wednesday, July 2nd at 1pm the groundbreaking ceremony will be held at the gazebo quadrant downtown that will mark the start of the $2.9 million Appalachian Community Grant program project to redesign three of the four downtown quadrants. John Carey, the director of the Governor’s Office of Appalachia and Lydia Mihalik, the director of the Ohio Department of Development, are among the dignitaries who have confirmed their attendance. Then the four-day First Town Days Festival kicks off the following day on Thursday, July 3rd. Again, it will feature food vendors and live music on the midway, the Grand Parade on Friday, fireworks Saturday night, and the annual car show on Sunday. Festival details can be found here: https://www.firsttowndays.com/. The following week, on Saturday, July 12th at 11am, a ribbon-cutting ceremony will be held to officially open the model home in Matt and Audra Karam’s “New Philadelphia Housing Plan.” The model home has been under construction for the past several months at its location at 347 Ray Avenue. The City has been working with the Karams to find vacant lots in neighborhoods where their two-bedroom starter homes could be built. This is an effort to address the shortage of affordable housing in New Philadelphia. More information on the plan can be found here: https://newphiladelphiahousingplan.com/. 2 Takeaways from the Recent Mayors Association of Ohio Annual Conference As expected, attempts by a citizens group and some Ohio legislators to eliminate local property taxes was a big topic of discussion at the recent Mayors Association of Ohio conference I recently attended. The mayors also received updates on legislation that would continue to erode Home Rule and make unfunded mandates on local governments. There were also presentations on the importance of county land banks, efforts by the Ohio EPA to improve water quality, housing development strategies, and proposed changes to Ohio’s adult use marijuana law that would remove intoxicating hemp products from retail stores and only make them available from state- licensed marijuana dispensaries. In a roundtable discussion with other city mayors, I learned that other towns are looking for solutions to growing problems with the deer population and feral cats. 3 The NPact Flower Committee Is Rockin’ It! I want to thank the members of NPact’s flower committee for their work to beautify our downtown area with flowers and plants. Despite the heat, over the past weekend the committee worked to continue their planting in the pots and beds on North and South Broadway. Diane Lautenschleger and master gardener Annadele France are leading the group. And they will continue to use their green thumbs when the plantings in the downtown quadrant’s new design are in place. 4 How to Beat the Heat The New Philadelphia City Health Department’s Facebook page is a great source of information on how to take care of yourself and your pets during this 90-degree weather. Here is a list of cooling centers in Tuscarawas County that I pulled from the page: 2 SERVICE DIRECTOR………….. Service Director Ron McAbier: Mr. McAbier had the following report: 1. Southside Gas line Project: Last week we had a pre-construction meeting for this project. It will be a large project, almost 17,000 ft of low-pressure line, and 15,300 ft of medium pressure. This job is expected to last until the end of November. 2. Franklin Square Project: Pieces have been installed. The reclamation work going down 4th Drive has been remedied. They still have to grind the pavement, which should be done in the next month. 3. Glen Drive Project: I got confirmation on Friday that they’ll start next Monday, July 1st. 4. KSU Connector Trail: We’ll have a 2nd walk-through on Thursday. We had one previously and some stuff wasn’t’ done correctly. They still have to do the grinding and get rid of some standing water. We’ll meet with the contractor and ODOT again on Thursday to try to go over one last punch list. 5. Sidewalk Replacement Program: Started June 1st, we got 13 applications and 9 were turned back in with money. I believe there’s $6400 left so if there’s anyone who still wants to do it on the residential end, please urge them to do that. It’s a great program, a great opportunity, and well spent tax payer dollars. Mr. Walker had the following comment: I came through Franklin, 4th , and Front and I was impressed by the work that has been done. Mr. Sears had the following question: On Glen Drive, is there a timeline on the finish date? 3  Mr. McAbier: Once they start they have 90 days. So you’re looking at September 30th. Mr. Sears asked the following question: How high up the hill does Phase 2 go? Mr. McAbier: 475 ft from Phase 1. AUDITOR ……………MRS. HEATHER DENHAM………..EXCUSED ABSENSE TREASURER………..MR. TOM GERBER……………NO REPORT SAFETY DIRECTOR ………………………….MR. KEVIN MILLIGAN Mr. Milligan had the following report: No real report on police and fire this evening. Another part of my role is traffic flow and signage in the City. There are two areas that have been brought to my attention that I have been evaluating and will continue to evaluate, it’s the intersections of 2nd and Fair NE and 2nd and Fair NW. They have been brought to my attention due to safety concerns. If you recall that years ago there used to be lights at that intersection, those lights have been removed. There’s been some discussion as to whether that should be a 4-way stop. I am working through some data right now to consider making that change to those intersections. The other area I’m looking at is Front Ave. and South Broadway. If you think about coming eastbound on Front Ave. and making a right-hand turn on South Broadway, how traffic begins to back up through there. I’m looking at that intersections into things we might be able to do to help traffic flow. Mr. Fete had the following question: The Resolution that we put on the Agenda for tonight on purchasing the used vehicle for the fire department. I spoke to the Chief last week about it and he let me believe that had to be done in a relatively quick timeframe so that we don’t lose the option to purchase that, and that it’s done on a first come first serve basis. Do we need to schedule a couple extra meetings to get that done? Mr. Milligan: I wasn’t under the impression that we needed to do that. I know we spoke with the vendor and we were told that if we wanted to purchase it, it was ours. I’ll follow up with the chief on that. Mr. Walker had the following comment: The previous Safety Director, on the Southside at South School where it starts narrowing down there by Springbrook there’s a “no parking beyond this sign” spot. It’s very close to the intersection and when they have soccer games big SUVs sit there. I had talked to him (Mr. Popham) and they actually moved it back to where it starts narrowing. Somebody moved it back to where it was before. LAW DIRECTOR……MR. MARVIN FETE Mr. Fete had the following report: When we met last time I mentioned that we received a challenge on our vendor’s policy. We charge vendor’s a $30.00 fee if somebody wants to go door to door. We had somebody present Jami Bailey, the Mayor’s Office Manager, a legal memorandum that sited a US Supreme Court Case called Real Silk Hosiery Mills vs. the City of Portland from 1925. It said in there that if it effects interstate commerce, you can’t charge a fee for it. I looked into it, and that case is relatively old. I also looked into follow-up cases such as Greer vs. City of Alexandria 1951, Minnesota vs. Cloverleaf 1981, and South Dakota vs. Warfare 2018. They all dealt with the same issue, and basically what the Supreme Court has done is they sent out a legal test as to whether or not your fee meets the standard. The permit fees can be applied for door-to-door sales, even if the vendor is from out of state, as long as the fee is applied in a non-discriminatory, is tied to a legitimate local purpose, and does not unduly burden City commerce. In the case that they sited from 1925 the court ruled that the fee charged was excessively high, revenue driven, and targeted interstate order taking. Based upon my analysis of 4 reading the Supreme Court cases our fee is different than the one in the 1925 case. Our fee is legitimate, and I ruled that it is appropriate. I gave a full written legal opinion to Jami to give to anyone who asks for it. BOARD/COMMISSION REPORTS: PLANNING COMMISSION……………….MAYOR JOEL DAY The Planning Commission will be meeting on the 2nd Tuesday of July at 1:00 PM. We’ll be continuing our discussion about a Southside Housing Development. BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS…….MR. RON MCABIER The Board of Zoning Appeals will be meeting here in Council Chambers on July 8th at 5:00 PM. There are no variance requests at this time, but we still have until next Friday to make the Agenda. AIRPORT COMMISSION…….MR. DAN LANZER The Airport Commission will be meeting on July 8, 2025 at 6:00 PM at the Harry Clever Field Meeting Room. PARK BOARD……………………….MR. BRIAN SEARS The Park Board met at 12:00 PM on June 18th. I was not able to attend due to a work commitment. The next meeting will be July 16th at noon. CEMETERY BOARD…………………MR. BRIAN SEARS……..NO REPORT HEALTH BOARD ………………….…. MR. TOM SIMMELINK………..EXCUSED ABSENSE STANDING COMMITTEE REPORTS: 5 FINANCE COMMITTEE ………………MR. STEVE RIPPETH………EXCUSED ABSENSE Mr. Lanzer gave the following report on Mr. Rippeth’s behalf: The Finance Committee met at 6:30 PM this evening with three items to discuss. We voted to have Proposed Resolution 17-2025 and Proposed Resolution 18-2025 added to tonight’s agenda for 1st Reading. PUBLIC WORKS AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE…MR. DAN LANZER……NO REPORT SAFETY, HEALTH, AND SERVICE COMMITTEE……MR. TOM SIMMELINK Mr. Simmelink had the following report: The Safety, Health, and Service Committee met tonight at 6:30 PM. We agreed to place Ordinance 9-2025 on tonight’s Agenda. ZONING AND ANNEXATION COMMITTEE……MRS. CHERYL RAMOS Mrs. Ramos had the following report: The Committee met tonight at 7:00 PM and we voted to have Resolution 1-2025 added to tonight’s Agenda for 1st Reading. That is the annexation of the McClave property. SALARY COMMITTEE………..………MR. KRIS KREINBIHL……….NO REPORT PARKS AND CEMETERY COMMITTEE……………MR. BRIAN SEARS…………NO REPORT SPECIAL AND CONTACT COMMITTEE……MR. MIKE WALKER………………..NO REPORT 6  VISITOR’S COMMENTS_ NONE COUNCIL COMMENTS Mrs. Ramos had the following comment: I would like to invite everybody to the Freedom Fest Celebration, which is a celebration on overcoming addiction, depression, etc. It will be held at the Revive Church which is on Union Avenue from 12pm to 6pm. There will family friendly activities, and speakers will be State Representative Jodi Salvo and Eric Fredrickson, who is an author well known in the recovery community. At 7:00 there will be a concert on their ground. President Kemp had the following comment: The Mayor has asked us to do a tour of the City. There are a lot of new Council members and it would be great if we could do it in July. Mayor Day suggested they do tours of the Airport, Cemetery, Wastewater, The Water Plant, The City Garage, General Services, the Fire Department, Police Department, and Health Department. READING OF ORDINANCES AND RESOLUTIONS ORDINANCES 9-2025 AN ORDINANCE BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NEW PHILADELPHIA, OHIO TO AMEND CODIFIED ORDINANCE 555.3(b)(2), 555.4(a) REGARDING FALSE ALARMS. 3rd Reading MR. WALKER MOTIONED FOR APPROVAL OF ORDINANCE 9-2025 MR. KREINBIHL SECONDED THE MOTION *Safety Director Milligan commented that he appreciated the Committee’s hard work on this Ordinance. 6 YEAS ORDINANCE 9-2025 HAS BEEN APPROVED RESOLUTIONS 1-2025 A RESOLUTION BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NEW PHILADELPHIA, OHIO AUTHORIZING THE ANNEXATION OF REAL PROPERTY LOCATED IN GOSHEN TOWNSHIP, PARCEL NUMBER 25-000174.000, OWNED BY ELMER AND EVA MCCLAVE, AND DECLARING AN EMERGENCY. 1st Reading 15-2025 A RESOLUTION BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NEW PHILADELPHIA, 7  TUSCARAWAS COUNTY, OHIO AUTHORIZING THE MAYOR TO SIGN ON THE BEHALF OF THE CITY, THE PROGRAMMATIC AGREEMENT WITH THE OHIO STATE HISTORICAL PRESERVATION OFFICE FOR THE ADMINISTRATION OF PROGRAMS USING HUD ALLOCATED FUNDS WITH DELEGATED REVIEW RESPONSIBILITIES AS AUTHORIZED UNDER 24 CFR PART 58. 3rd Reading MR. LANZER MOTIONED FOR APPROVAL OF RESOLUTION 15-2025 MR. KREINBIHL SECONDED THE MOTION 6 YEAS RESOLUTION 15-2025 HAS BEEN APPROVED 16-2025 A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE MAYOR TO ENTER INTO AQ PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT WITH THE CITY OF UHRICHSVILLE FOR THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE PY2025 COMMUNITY HOUSING IMPACT PRESERVATION (CHIP) GRANT PROGRAM (IF FUNDED). 3rd Reading MRS. RAMOS MOTIONED TO PASS RESOLUTION 16-2025 MR. SEARS SECONDED THE MOTION 6 YEAS RESOLUTION 16-2025 HAS BEEN APPROVED 17-2025 A RESOLUTION BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NEW PHILADELPHIA, TUSCARAWAS COUNTY, OHIO, AUTHORIZING AND DIRECTING THE SAFETY DIRECTOR TO ENTER INTO AN AGREEMENT WITH FENTON FIRE EQUIPMENT TO SELL THE 1997 FORD HORTON E350 523 AMBULANCE, THE 1998 FORD HORTON E350 523 AMBULANCE, AND THE 2009 CHEVROLET BRAUN 4500 AMBULANCE CHIEF XL III, AT AN APPRAISED FAIR MARKET VALUE TO THE HIGHEST COMPETITIVE BID, TO BE DEPOSITED INTO THE CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT FUND 420 FOR THE FIRE DEPARTMENT, AND DECLARING AN EMERGENCY. 1st Reading 18-2025 A RESOLUTION BY THE CITY OF NEW PHILADELPHIA, TUSCARAWAS COUNTY OHIO, AUTHORIZING AND DIRECTING THE SAFETY DIRECTOR TO PURCHASE A 2000 FORD F-550 4X4, RESCUE (R2434), THROUGH FENTON FIRE EQUIPMENT SALES FROM PATETOWN VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT, INC, IN GOLDSBORO, NC. PRICE NOT TO EXCEED $45,000 FROM CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT FUND 420. 1st Reading UNFINISHED OR OLD BUSINESS: NONE NEW BUSINESS: NONE With no other business to discuss Mr. Lanzer motioned to adjourn at 8:09 PM. 8  CLERK OF COUNCIL______________________________________________________ Julie Courtright APPROVED ______________________ PRESIDENT OF COUNCIL __________________________________________________ Don Kemp 9