Village Council Meeting

RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Minutes of Village of South Amherst Meeting REGULAR COUNCIL April 10 2023 Call to order: 7:01 P.M. – The council meeting was called to order by Mayor David Leshinski and opened with the Lord's Prayer followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. The roll was called: Ex officio members: Councilmember Michele Jeffers P Fiscal Officer Michelle Henke P Councilmember Scott Jones EA Records Clerk Laurie Beran P Councilmember Becky Siesky P Law Director Matthew Mishak P Councilmember Jeri Leigh Siss P Councilmember David Troike P (EA – excused absences) President Pro Tempore Jeanne Maschari P Councilmember Maschari moved to approve the absence of Councilmember Jones due to vacation. Councilmember Siss seconded the motion. Jeffers x Jones Absent Maschari x Siesky x Siss x Troike x Motion passed. APPROVAL OF AGENDA April 10, 2023 Amend the agenda to add Executive Session to discuss further federal grant in aid of ARPA Funds and road striping. Councilmember Maschari moved to approve the amended agenda. Councilmember Troike seconded the motion. Jeffers x Jones EA Maschari x Siesky x Siss x Troike x Motion passed. APPROVAL OF MINUTES March 27, 2023 Councilmember Maschari moved to approve the minutes as presented. Councilmember Siesky seconded the motion. Jeffers x Jones EA Maschari x Siesky x Siss x Troike x Motion passed. VISITORS Firefighter Andrew Lawrie MAYOR NOPEC Grant Has made available through the NOPEC Foundation grants between ten to forty thousand dollars ($10- 40,000). The mayor will write a grant for a feasibility study to get sanitary sewers to the village. Councilmember Siss recommended working with the SABPA clerk Koscho seeing that she has grant writing experience. Generator Electrical Accents reviewed the Village Hall/Water Tower needs for a back-up generator. Due to the extensive draw that would be required of a generator, it was recommended that a diesel- or gas-powered generator would be required. The cost estimate would be between sixty to eighty thousand dollars ($60 – 80,000.00). At this time, it is not a necessary need. Fee Ordinance The mayor recommended that after the discussion with RCAP, a fee should be included on the utility bill to build up funds for a future feasibility study. The mayor asked the ordinance committee to research the issue.  RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Minutes of Village of South Amherst Meeting Patching Council was sent a copy of the estimate, further discussion will take place during the committee portion of the meeting. FISCAL OFFICER Payment Listing 3/24-4/6/23 presented. March Mayor’s Court Gross Receipts Ohio City of Total net Computer Fund Computer Fund General Fund Reparations Oberlin Receipts to SA Clerk Court 18,362.00 8,122.00 324.00 25,946.00 2,192.00 659.00 23,095.00 Revised SA Policies & Procedures Revised hard copies were issued to all council members, boards received an electronic version. Acknowledgement forms need to be signed and turned in. RECORDS CLERK March Building/Zoning Report 421-427 W Main Replace power supply box 313 N Lake St Roof permit 237 W Main St Waterproofing 444 W Main Demo H2O Plant Inspection 120 E Main St Roof There were zero zoning inspections for the month of March. Building Ordinance The Ohio Board of Building Standards requested that 1301.01 be revised to read the most recent edition of the Ohio Building Code instead of a specifically dated edition. LCPH Sewage Treatment Systems Meetings Information session on the new operation and maintenance program for home sewage treatment systems will be held on April 19th at the New Russia Township Hall at 6 p.m. DEPARTMENTS Service Code Enforcement (Councilmember Maschari presented.) A list of current ordinance violations was emailed, at the next ordinance meeting the committee will score the properties and recommend to council which ones should be done according to priority and cost. Branches Mayor stated that letters should be sent to the people who have branches put out in their yards as a reminder that we do not collect branches, only Republic Waste does. Councilmember Siss would like a message sent from Republic to the residents specifying how the branches should be bundled for pick-up. Mayor Leshinski will contact Republic Services. Patching (Councilmember Maschari presented.) A road patching estimate was sought without coordination through the Street Commissioner. Water break patches were included in the estimate, and they should not have been. SABPA handles water break patches.  RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Minutes of Village of South Amherst Meeting Striping (Councilmember Maschari presented.) Councilmember Maschari moved to approve the road striping to be done by Lorain County. Councilmember Troike seconded the motion. Discussion: Mayor thinks the stop blocks on Russia & S Lake should be reexamined, do they really need done. Jeffers x Jones EA Maschari x Siesky x Siss x Troike x Motion passed. Fire March Fire EMS MVA Mutual Other 13 1 6 5 Training for the month of March was medical, SCBA, hose and truck driving. The Chief and Assistant Chief attended the monthly county Chiefs meeting and the Sandstone Ambulance District meeting. Administrative Assistant The job description was included in the council packet, and it will be an internal position. The custodian position has been deleted and those responsibilities have been included as part of the daily duties for all firefighters. Police Blotter Citations (3/13 – 4/6) 81 Speed, 4 right on Red, 3 Headlights, 1 Red Light, 1 No License, 1 DUS Traffic Stop Locations: 42 Russia, 35 W Main, 11 E Main, 10 N Lake, 4 S Lake, 2 Quarry, 1 Annis, 1 Leonard Calls for Service: 8 LCSO: 3 Officers are completing the State mandatory training. Purchase of a new cruiser is underway. BOARDS Cemetery Mayor stated that the board is requesting to meet with the Building & Grounds Committee at their board meeting on April 12, 2023. Councilmember Troike will not be present. The Records Clerk inquired if the Building & Grounds Committee was personally contacted. Mayor Leshinski stated that they were not contacted personally. Park The April meeting was rescheduled to 10 a.m. on Saturday, April 22. SABPA (Councilmember Siss presented.) Rate Study Council had requested information about Mr. Timko’s presentation to the SABPA. At this time the board is still reviewing various scenarios, once those have been finalized, then further information will be dispersed. Storm Drain Cleaning Vac truck was rescheduled for the week of April 17th.  RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Minutes of Village of South Amherst Meeting Map Project Board member Mark Leshinski reported that his part of the project was completed, and maps are marked as to what must be kept and what may be disposed of. Councilmember Maschari reiterated that for the maps marked to be kept, they would be scanned and only kept in a digital format. The maps that are no longer of value to the BPA must be turned over to the Records Commission for further processing and/or disposal. N. Lake St. Project Project is completed. Residents are happy with their new sidewalks are done. Road Patches An estimate from Hart Asphalt to repair the road from water breaks is eight thousand, five hundred and ninety dollars ($8,590.00). Inactive Accounts Roughly $2000.00 of interest, the clerk is working on processing the accounts. Truck Issue There have been ongoing issues with the BPA truck. Options are being investigated. Councilmember Maschari inquired as to the number of work orders there are a month. Russia Rd Culvert The culvert tile closest to 6202 Russia Rd. has some deterioration on the north side of the road. Seeing that it is in the road right of way the board will continue to monitor. Water Operating Fund (Councilmember Maschari presented.) The Water Operating Fund for Unencumbered Fund Balances is in the negative at forty-five thousand, three hundred thirteen dollars and seventy-four cents ($45,313.74). Granted that figure is based on what is budgeted and all the revenue is not booked for the year, and it could turn into a positive, but is anyone else concerned about this? The fiscal officer replied that, “Governmental accounting is a unique animal because you can spend what you think you’re going make…so, it is concerning to have a negative number in April.” What would the state do if they came in and it was negative in December? The fiscal officer replied, “It cannot be negative…when the board member asked about options for a new truck, there is no money. We are currently budgeting according to the revenue coming in for the year, there is very little wiggle room. If we have an emergency like we did last year and you’re operating out of your operating fund, you would be scrambling to figure out how to pay for stuff. It is a concern.” Ms. Maschari referred to her earlier question about the number of work orders for water per month because there should be fewer work orders with the new water meters and possibly more work coming from storm water. So, is the operator’s time sheet being monitored for where his hours are being charged and should more hours be charged to storm water? The fiscal officer replied, “that it is not reflected on the time sheet… Looking at the bigger picture, which is why the rate study is imperative. The rate study is a path to increase revenue and we are not selling water that we are harvesting, we are purchasing it and not keeping up with what Rural Water is doing or planning to do…The balance cannot be in the negative and would need to be in the positive by August. They would need to target their biggest controllable expense, which is payroll and operating expenses.” Councilmember Maschari asked, if the rate change does not happen in time, the only place for it to come is the General Fund? The fiscal officer stated, the User Fee Fund would be drained first, before the General Fund would be used. The User Fee Fund cannot be used for payroll.  RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Minutes of Village of South Amherst Meeting Councilmember Maschari restated that it would help if someone monitored the operator’s hours to charge appropriately what is water and what is storm water. Ms. Maschari said that council should have an expectation of SABPA to have a timeframe for when the board will set a new User Fee Rate. Mayor Leshinski stated that he received notice today from Mr. Waldecker (RLCWA) that their new rates will be effective January 1, 2024. COMMITTEES Street-Sidewalk-Service Walkabout April 14th at 5:30 Safety Quarterly Meeting To be held on April 20 at 4 p.m. Questions of Concern Councilmember Siss asked the following: • Additional fire contracts: no information from the Fire Chief at this time. • Holding Tank: waiting for the engineer’s plans. • Fire Chief Firefighter II Certification: has not started. Sandstone Ambulance District Mayor Leshinski stated that a new contract will be discussed and feels that a municipal contribution may be requested from each political subdivision. Community & Economic Development Memorial Day Parade Committee Confirmed when the flag committee will hang the flags along Main St. Developing a video regarding Memorial Day and community engagement. Councilmember Jones is developing a shirt. Administrative Working on SOP for projects, bids. ORDINANCE Ordinance No. 1765-23 An ordinance fixing the rate of compensation for part-time members of South Amherst Village Fire Department effective 1 April 2023, and declaring an emergency. Councilmember Maschari moved to suspend the rules for Ordinance No. 1765-23. Councilmember Siss seconded the motion. Jeffers x Jones EA Maschari x Siesky x Siss x Troike x Motion passed. Councilmember Maschari moved to pass Ordinance No. 1765-23. Councilmember Siesky seconded the motion. Jeffers x Jones EA Maschari x Siesky x Siss x Troike x Motion passed. Ordinance No. 1766-23 An ordinance repealing existing South Amherst Codified Section 1301.01 and enacting new South Amherst Codified Ordinance Section 1301.01 Adoption of Ohio Building Code and declaring an emergency.  RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Minutes of Village of South Amherst Meeting Councilmember Maschari moved to suspend the rules for Ordinance No. 1766-23. Councilmember Siesky seconded the motion. Jeffers x Jones EA Maschari x Siesky x Siss x Troike x Motion passed. Councilmember Maschari moved to pass Ordinance No. 1766-23. Councilmember Siesky seconded the motion. Discussion: Councilmember Siss clarified that the wording was changed to current edition. Jeffers x Jones EA Maschari x Siesky x Siss x Troike x Motion passed. RESOLUTION Resolution No. 689-23 Northeast Ohio Public Energy Council (NOPEC) Energized Community Grant Program 2023 NEC Grant Acceptance Councilmember Maschari moved to pass Resolution No. 689-23. Councilmember Siss seconded the motion. Jeffers x Jones EA Maschari x Siesky x Siss x Troike x Motion passed. Resolution No. 691-23 Agreement with Sunbelt Rental Inc. on behalf of the Village of South Amherst Service Department for Rental Equipment Councilmember Maschari moved to suspend the rules for Resolution No. 691-23. Councilmember Siss seconded the motion. Jeffers x Jones EA Maschari x Siesky x Siss x Troike x Motion passed. Councilmember Maschari moved to pass Resolution No. 691-23. Councilmember Siss seconded the motion. Jeffers x Jones EA Maschari x Siesky x Siss x Troike x Motion passed. Resolution No. 692-23 Authorization of payment to Kelly Brothers Construction, Inc. Water Treatment Plant Demolition. Councilmember Maschari moved to suspend the rules for Resolution No. 692-23. Councilmember Siesky seconded the motion. Jeffers x Jones EA Maschari x Siesky x Siss x Troike x Motion passed. Councilmember Maschari moved to pass Resolution No. 692-23. Councilmember Siesky seconded the motion. Discussion: Jeffers x Jones EA Maschari x Siesky x Siss x Troike x Motion passed. Resolution No. 693-23 Verizon Wireless Agreement Councilmember Maschari moved to suspend the rules for Resolution No. 693-23. Councilmember Siesky seconded the motion. Jeffers x Jones EA Maschari x Siesky x Siss x Troike x Motion passed. Councilmember Maschari moved to pass Resolution No. 693-23. Councilmember Siesky seconded the motion. Discussion: Jeffers x Jones EA Maschari x Siesky x Siss x Troike x Motion passed. Resolution No. 694-23 Statewide Municipal Leasing Agreement for 2023 Ford Utility Interceptor Councilmember Maschari moved to suspend the rules for Resolution No. 694-23. Councilmember Siesky seconded the motion. Jeffers x Jones EA Maschari x Siesky x Siss x Troike x Motion passed. Councilmember Maschari moved to pass Resolution No. 694-23. Councilmember Siesky seconded the motion.  RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Minutes of Village of South Amherst Meeting Jeffers x Jones EA Maschari x Siesky x Siss x Troike x Motion passed. Resolution No. 695-23 Rate of Compensation for Service Worker / Street Supervisor Councilmember Maschari moved to suspend the rules for Resolution No. 695-23. Councilmember Jeffers seconded the motion. Jeffers x Jones EA Maschari x Siesky x Siss x Troike x Motion passed. Councilmember Maschari moved to pass Resolution No. 695-23. Councilmember Jeffers seconded the motion. Jeffers x Jones EA Maschari x Siesky x Siss x Troike x Motion passed. MISCELLANEOUS Mayor Leshinski requested to enter into Executive Session in order to discuss provisions of ARPA Funds. Councilmember Maschari moved to enter into Executive Session at 8:17 p.m. Councilmember Siss seconded the motion. Jeffers x Jones EA Maschari x Siesky x Siss x Troike x Motion passed. Resumed regular session at 8:39 p.m. ADJOURNMENT Time 8:40 p.m. Councilmember Maschari moved to adjourn. Councilmember Siesky seconded. Respectfully submitted, ______________________________ Fiscal Officer Michelle Henke ______________________________ Mayor David Leshinski