Regular Council Meeting Tuesday, May 3, 2005 Mayor Dave France called the meeting to order. Roll Call: John Synodinos present, Dr. Robert Price present, Thomas Bottorf present, Robert Martin Sr. arrived immediately after Roll Call, Matt Parise present, Dave Smith present. Officials: Mayor Dave France present, Solicitor Christopher D. Becker absent, Clerk Treasurer Mike Payne present, Administrator Walt Ziemba present. Moment of Silence Pledge of Allegiance Reading of Minutes Minutes from the April 21, 2005 Meeting will be approved at the next Council Meeting. Persons Appearing Before Council Mike Jacoby, Progress Alliance Director, briefly discussed Tax Increment Financing (TIF) with Council Members. He offered to return to discuss the subject in more detail if Council wished to learn more about this economic development aid in the future. Chief Ed Laman told Council he would be using funds from his LEADS budget to purchase a new file server for his computers. Tom Wedlake, said that he had refused to pay a late fee on his water bill for the past 3 years because he was only a few days late paying his bill several years ago. John Synodinos said that the Village Ordinance addresses these situations and that late fees had to be paid. Robert Martin Sr. told Mr. Wedlake that the 10% late penalty statement was indicated at the bottom of the water bill. Mr. Wedlake said that he had met with the Village Administrator several times about shutting his water off, but no one could find his shut off valve. Perry Pool said he would send someone out to check on this matter. Matt Parise reminded Mr. Wedlake that Council had taken no action to reduce his water bill. Ordinance and/or Resolutions Ordinance 2005-08: An Ordinance updating the business where Ordinances are to be posted was read for the 3rd time. Motion by Thomas Bottorf, second by Matt Parise to approve Ordinance 2005-08. Vote: John Synodinos yea, Dr. Robert Price yea, Thomas Bottorf yea, Robert Martin Sr. yea, Matt Parise yea, Dave Smith yea. Motion passed 6-0. Ordinance 2005-10: An Ordinance changing water rates was read for the 2nd time. Motion by John Synodinos, second Robert Martin Sr. to table Ordinance 2005-10 indefinitely. Discussion on the Motion: John Synodinos said that Council was an entity, and as such, had an obligation to keep its word in the matter of the decrease in water rates that was promised four years ago. Matt Parise stated that Ordinance 2005-10 had language to increase rates from $3.25 to $4.00 per thousand in 2006, whereas his proposal (Plan A) would keep rates the same in 2005 and 2006. He asked Mike Payne if it was stated four years ago that the $1.44 increase would be removed after the funds were collected and if the total amount targeted had been collected. Mike Payne said that the total amount had been collected and that the removal of the $1.44 increase had been inferred by the discussion at that time. Robert Martin Sr. said that his sentiments on this issue were with Matt Parise and John Synodinos. Dave Smith explained that rate structure under Ordinance 2005-10. He said that if Wintersville had a favorable outcome in its lawsuit against Steubenville they might be able to keep rates from going up in 2006. He also explained that the 3000 gallons for residences and the 10,000 gallons minimum for businesses would be removed from the current water structure in the new Ordinance. Thomas Bottorf said that Council had been working on this Ordinance for a long time to come up with the best plan for all water customers. He also agreed that if the Village was successful with its lawsuit with Steubenville that a portion of the amount collected would be returned in some format to the residents. Dr. Robert Price said that the rate structure for water rates was in place before most of Council came on board. He said that two different rate proposals had been looked at before the Ordinance was prepared and he thought that the plan developed by Mr. Bottorf was the best plan. John Synodinos said that the idea of holding rates down if the Village was successful in its lawsuit against Steubenville had not been mentioned before. Matt Parise asked Mike Payne if the $3.25 per thousand rate in the Ordinance was high enough to avoid using surplus funds from the water fund. Mike Payne said that a rate of at least $3.70 would be needed based on his estimates to break even in 2005, without using any of the surplus funds collected previously this year. Thomas Bottorf said that the proposed Ordinance was an attempt to fix and unfair system that was currently in place. Robert Martin Sr. said that the fairest system was one that would help the most people and that businesses could always raise prices to cover their costs. Dave Smith said that the rates in the Ordinance were able to be kept to $3.25 per thousand gallons in 2005 because the $1.44 amount had been continued to be collected to date. He also said that Businesses would be paying a higher flat rate under the new ordinance. Vote to table Ordinance 2005-10: John Synodinos yea, Dr. Robert Price nay, Thomas Bottorf nay, Robert Martin Sr. yea, Matt Parise yea, Dave Smith nay. Mayor Dave France broke the tie by voting nay. Motion defeated 4-3. Ordinance 2005-11: An Ordinance changing sewer rates was read for the 2nd time. Resolution 2005-12: A Resolution adopting the 2006 budget required to be sent to the County was read for the 1st time. Ordinance 2005-13: An Ordinance establishing R-4 Zoning, was read for the 1st time. Motion by Thomas Bottorf, second by John Synodinos to suspend the rules for the 2nd and 3rd readings of Ordinance 2005-13. Vote: John Synodinos yea, Dr. Robert Price yea, Thomas Bottorf yea, Robert Martin Sr. yea, Matt Parise yea, Dave Smith yea. Motion passed 6-0. Ordinance 2005-13: An Ordinance establishing R-4 Zoning, was read for the 2nd and 3rd times. Motion by Thomas Bottorf, second by John Synodinos to approve Ordinance 2005-13. Vote: John Synodinos yea, Dr. Robert Price yea, Thomas Bottorf yea, Robert Martin Sr. yea, Matt Parise yea, Dave Smith yea. Motion passed 6-0. Motion by Matt Parise, second by Robert Martin Sr. to move up the Good of the Village part of the meeting, so that those in the audience who wished to address Council could do so at this time. Vote: John Synodinos yea, Dr. Robert Price yea, Thomas Bottorf yea, Robert Martin Sr. yea, Matt Parise yea, Dave Smith yea. Motion passed 6-0. For the Good of the Village Mayor Dave France said he would like to limit those who wished to speak to 3 minutes. Judith Alferd, 250 Cadiz Road, inquired what her new water rates would be under the new structure. Lee Tobias, 301 Leonard Ave, suggested that the new water rates should be voted on. Shelly Polsinelli, 157 Garden Drive, said that Council should consider Indian Creek schools when deciding water rates since they were a large water costumer. Shelly Polsinelli, inquired who sent out the flyers with the information on the water rates. John Synodinos, Matt Parise and Robert Martin Sr. said that they had sent it out and had paid for the costs to do so. Robert Chochrun, 153 Garden Drive, said that the statement was made by Council four years ago to drop the rates by $1.44 after the end of the four years. Arlene McConnell, 200 Meadow Lane, said that she did not understand the rate structure since it did not seem to make proportionate sense when looking at the new rate. Rose Mare Fitzgerald, 227 Woodridge Drive, said she was a senior citizen and she thought she would save more under Plan B after comparing the two water plans. Charles Green, 219 Rex Ave, asked if Council had considered that businesses could write off higher water bills on their taxes. Mona Chandler, Garden Drive, asked how much her water bill would be under the new rates. Robert Laukert, 166 Rex Ave., said that he had been a Council Member from March 23, 2000 until December 31, 2001. He said that in November 2001 Council person John Synodinos suggested that the Village stop collecting the extra $1.44 and that if the remaining $450,000 was needed to repay Steubenville that a loan could be taken out by the Village. John Synodinos said that the reason he wanted to stop collecting the $1.44 per thousand from residents in 2001 was because Steubenville had been "double dipping" in the manner that they were charging Wintersville for water. Mayor Dave France called for a 5 minute recess at this time. Charles Green, Rex Ave. said that residents should learn to conserve water, and those who use less should pay less for water. He said that Senior Citizens should not have to underwrite the water bills of large families. Mona Fitzgerald said she could sympathize with large families that had large water bills. Scott Wells, Fernwood Road, asked if the Village could start enforcing the tarp law for trucks carrying gravel, dirt, etc. because trucks going down his road were not using any type of covering. Lee Tobias, Leonard Ave., commended Robert Martin Sr., Matt Parise and especially John Synodinos for their concern of the people in Wintersville. Reports, Announcements and Communications Mayor Dave France read the April 2005 Code Enforcement Report. Administrator Report Walt Ziemba said that he now had 3 members for the Sam's Way Equalization Board. Motion by Thomas Bottorf, second by Robert Martin Sr. to approve Greg Byers, Jay Dziewatkowski and Donna Graham as members of the Equalization Board. Vote: John Synodinos yea, Dr. Robert Price yea, Thomas Bottorf yea, Robert Martin Sr. yea, Matt Parise yea, Dave Smith yea. Motion passed 6-0. Motion by Matt Parise, second by Robert Martin Sr. to accept the bid of Parrish Enterprises as recommended by the Administrator for Grass mowing in the Village. Walt Ziemba said that the City of Steubenville had been given until May 23 2005 to submit their brief regarding the lawsuit against the Village. Walt Ziemba told Council that Comcast had made a few minor channel changes to their sports package. Walt Ziemba said that the Village had received a permit (Number 12) for the Beechwood / Floyd Project. Walt Ziemba asked for permission to bid out for the purchase of the Fire Hydrants and also for the resurfacing of Winters Drive, Russell and Rex Avenues, using Issue 2 Funds. Motion by Matt Parise, second by Dave Smith to authorize the Administrator to bid out the Fire Hydrant and Resurfacing projects and to schedule the bid opening at the June 2, 2005 Council Meetings. Vote: John Synodinos yea, Dr. Robert Price yea, Thomas Bottorf yea, Robert Martin Sr. yea, Matt Parise yea, Dave Smith yea. Motion passed 6-0. Walt Ziemba announced that Hydrant Flushing would be taking place in the Village beginning Sunday Night May 22 2005 through Thursday Night May 26, 2005 between the hours of 10:00 PM to 6:00 AM Walt Ziemba said he would be getting a price for a laptop PC for the Water Department. Walt Ziemba said that a recreation packet had been delivered to the Jefferson County Commissioners requesting Grant Funds. Walt Ziemba said that he had obtained a quote for fencing behind the Village's Salt Bin, and would obtain an additional quote. Walt Ziemba said that he would be discussing the idea of registering businesses in the Village at the next Council meeting with Chris Becker. Unfinished Business Walt Ziemba said he would be meeting with County Officials to discuss the results from the tests conducted concerning Sunset Gardens. Thomas Bottorf reminded the Administrator that a bidding was needed for Sanitation landfill services. New Business Motion by Robert Martin Sr., second by Matt Parise to pay bills approved by Council as funds become available. Vote: John Synodinos yea, Dr. Robert Price yea, Thomas Bottorf yea, Robert Martin Sr. yea, Matt Parise yea, Dave Smith yea. Motion passed 6-0. Motion by Thomas Bottorf , second by Matt Parise to go into executive session to discuss personnel matters. Vote: John Synodinos yea, Dr. Robert Price yea, Thomas Bottorf yea, Robert Martin Sr. yea, Matt Parise yea, Dave Smith yea. Motion passed 6-0. Motion by Dave Smith, second by Matt Parise to return to regular session. Vote: John Synodinos yea, Dr. Robert Price yea, Thomas Bottorf yea, Robert Martin Sr. yea, Matt Parise yea, Dave Smith yea. Motion passed 6-0. Motion by Thomas Bottorf, second by Matt Parise to temporarily increase the hourly rate of pay for Debbie Carney by the difference between the base rates between her position and the position held by Carol Kennedy, while Debbie Carney filled in for Carol Kennedy. This rate of pay would be paid during the time when Carol Kennedy was off for Medical leave and Debbie Carney was performing the full scope of duties performed by Carol Kennedy. Vote: John Synodinos yea, Dr. Robert Price yea, Thomas Bottorf yea, Robert Martin Sr. yea, Matt Parise yea, Dave Smith yea. Motion passed 6-0. Motion by Thomas Bottorf, second by Robert Martin Sr. to adjourn. Vote: John Synodinos yea, Dr. Robert Price yea, Thomas Bottorf yea, Robert Martin Sr. yea, Matt Parise yea, Dave Smith yea. Motion passed 6-0. Next Regularly scheduled meeting is May 19, 2005 at 7:00 PM. Disclaimer: These are a draft of the minutes and not deemed official until approved by Council. Mike Payne, Clerk Treasurer Dave France, Mayor