Regular Council Meeting Thursday, September 4, 2003 Mayor Robert E. Cochrun called the meeting to order. Roll Call: John Synodinos present, Dave France present, Thomas Bottorf absent (arrived late), Robert Martin Sr. present, Beth Rupert present, Dave Smith present. Officials: Mayor Robert E. Cochrun present, Solicitor Christopher D. Becker present, Clerk Treasurer Mike Payne present, Administrator Gary R. Folden present. Moment of Silence Pledge of Allegiance Reading of Minutes Motion by Robert Martin Sr., second by Dave France to approve the minutes from the Regular Council Meeting held August 21, 2003. Vote: John Synodinos abstained, Dave France yea, Robert Martin Sr. yea, Beth Rupert yea, Dave Smith yea. Motion passed 4-0 with 1 abstention. Persons Appearing before Council Fay Christ, 116 Sabina Drive, said that the public has been given the impression that the only reason Sabina Drive residents do not want additional traffic through their subdivision is because of their road being widened. She said that the residents concerns are that the road would be only 10 –12 feet from their front door, vehicles and trucks would be constantly going over the road leading to damage to their foundations and creating a general unsafe situation. She said that the value of their homes would decrease causing residents financial harm when they tried to sell their homes. She said she was offended by the newspaper article from the WABA Meeting, which quoted a Councilman as “warning businesses” that this change would cause a loss to businesses. She said that the residents just wanted peace of mind that the Sabina Drive would stay off the table as an option. Mayor Cochrun told Sabina Drive residents that ODOT would be coming to the Village at 6:00 PM. prior to the next regular scheduled Council Meeting on September 18th to discuss the 43 project. Dave France said that as president of the Wintersville Area Business Association (WABA) he needed to bring matters like this before the association. He said that if the Village lost Phase II of the project it would affect all residents. He said he checked with a realtor regarding the value of the Sabina resident’s property values after the construction took place. He said the realtor told him that the residential value of the homes would go down but the Commercial value would actually go up. Dave France said that all he did at the Meeting was present the WABA members with a copy of the minutes of the meeting. Dave France said that this road project has been going on for the last 3 years. He said Sabina Drive has been discussed in every alternative. He said ODOT will tell everyone what the possibilities are at the next meeting. John Synodinos discussed the editorial written by Dave Smith that was in the Herald Star newspaper. Dave Smith told John Synodinos that the editorial had nothing to do with the Sabina Drive situation that was currently being discussed by Council. John Synodinos finished going through the points from the editorial. Robert Martin Sr. said that Council should be concerned about the Sabina Drive situation. He said unless someone on Council changes their mind, that the residents should have no reason to worry about Sabina Drive still being an option for the 43 project. Beth Rupert asked Faye Christ if she was pleased with the fact that a meeting with ODOT was scheduled in two weeks. Faye Christ said that she was glad to see that the ODOT Meeting had been expedited. She said that she felt that ODOT had selected their current plan from Day 1 because it was the least expensive. Beth Rupert asked Gary Folden if there was any information that Sabina Drive residents or ODOT needed for the meeting on the 18th. Gary Folden said that he did not know of anything they needed. Beth Rupert said she hoped that Council could stay focused for the meeting tonight and keep the best interests of the Village in mind. Mayor Cochrun said he would stick by his decision regarding Sabina Drive. Dave France said that if Phase II is not completed it would affect businesses because of traffic problems. Gary Folden said that any increased costs for the Route 43 project not funded by ODOT would have to be paid by the Village. He said that ODOT could say that any part of the extra costs involved is the Village’s responsibility, but that they (ODOT) would not simply pack their bags and leave. Dave France said that Wintersville has benefited from Wal-Mart coming in. He said that we need to work together for progress instead of attacking each other. He said that the Village needs to create more jobs and build the area back up. Dave Smith said that he thought the ODOT’s main concern in this project was safety. (Thomas Bottorf arrived at this point in the meeting) Reading of Ordinances and/or Resolutions Resolution 2003-16: A Resolution authorizing the Administrator to apply for Public Works Funds for Main Street. Motion by Beth Rupert, second by Robert Martin Sr. to approve Resolution 2003-16. Vote: John Synodinos yea, Dave France yea, Thomas Bottorf yea, Robert Martin Sr. yea, Beth Rupert yea, Dave Smith yea. Motion passed 6-0. Reports, Announcements, and Communications. Mayor Cochrun read the Magistrate, Police, and the Building Inspectors Reports for August 2003. Beth Rupert asked Gary Folden if he would get with the Chief about showing comparative statistics for the Police reports. Perry Pool reported that they were running culvert on Walnut Street to help stop the flooding of a resident on that street. Mayor Cochrun reminded residents to watch their speed in the subdivisions. He also said that he had instructed the Police Department to ticket anyone blocking the fire lanes at Big Bear and Kroger’s who were parked there illegally. Administrator’s Report Gary Folden reported that Council needed to pass a motion to asses the taxes of the owner of a property located at 95 and 100 Robert Street who have not been cutting the grass. He said the Village employees would cut the grass at the property. Motion by John Synodinos, second by Dave France to have the Village cut the grass at 95 and 100 Robert Street and assess the taxes of the property owner. Vote: John Synodinos yea, Dave France yea, Thomas Bottorf yea, Robert Martin Sr. yea, Beth Rupert yea, Dave Smith yea. Motion passed 6-0. Gary Folden said that Perry Pool had obtained a quote from Ohio Leak Locaters to check for leaks in the entire Village. The fixed price would be $14,250 for Ohio Leak Locaters to check all service connections in the village. He said that Ohio Leak Locaters was the only firm that they could find in Ohio that did this type of work. Motion by Robert Martin Sr., second by Dave France to approve hiring Ohio Leak Locaters at the fixed price of $14,250 to check for leaks throughout the Village. Vote: John Synodinos yea, Dave France yea, Thomas Bottorf yea, Robert Martin Sr. yea, Beth Rupert yea, Dave Smith yea. Motion passed 6-0. Gary Folden told Council that he had received additional information from the County regarding water negotiations, and suggested that Council might want to consider going into executive session to discuss this information. John Synodinos and Robert Martin Sr. indicated they did not want to go into executive session to discuss this. Beth Rupert asked Chris Becker and Gary Folden’s opinion on whether they thought Council needed to go into executive session for this matter. Chris Becker said that this matter would fall under water negotiations which was something that Council could legally discuss under executive secession, but it was their decision. Gary Folden said that negotiations with Steubenville had not been completely closed so there still were two entities involved in water purchase negotiations. Robert Martin Sr. said that he would like to see some type of open forum on the water issue for the residents before anything was approved. Dave France said that Council has appointed a negotiating team, who will come and present to Council any options they come up with. He said the more people involved with the process the slower it will move. He also said that Mr. Parise has an agenda to run for Council then later as a Commissioner using this water issue. Matt Parise, 215 S. Avalon Drive, said that he was a candidate for Wintersville Council but had no plans to run for Commissioner anytime in the near future. He said that people in the audience tonight were concerned about Sabina Drive and the water issue and those things needed to be discussed on the floor and not in executive session. Dave Smith said that Council was following standard negotiating procedure on the water issue, which included trying to come up with the best deal between the parties involved. He said that as soon as Council had come up with all the information on the best deal for the residents they would bring it to the public. He said that until Council had all the facts from the negotiating team the negotiations needed to follow an organized process. Beth Rupert said that the Village had paid Attorney Dennis O’Toole over $10,000 to date to negotiate the Village’s best deal to obtain water, and this was a wise decision. She asked Gary Folden if he had obtained information that had been requested in the previous executive session on the water issue. Gary Folden said he had a letter that answered some contract negotiation questions that had been asked during the previous executive session. John Synodinos said that if Council went into executive session he would ask for the information obtained in executive session when Council reconvened into regular session. Beth Rupert said that Council was still using terms like negotiations and proposals and just trying to obtain answers to questions previously asked during the last executive session. She said that Council still had questions on this issue and it might destroy the process if these issues were brought to the floor. Motion by Beth Rupert, second by Dave Smith to go into executive session to discuss water contractual negotiations. John Synodinos said that he disagreed with Beth Rupert that negotiations would be hurt by bringing this information to the open floor. Dave France said that he agreed with John Synodinos that whatever would be discussed would be talked about on the open floor anyway. Vote: John Synodinos nay, Dave France yea, Thomas Bottorf yea, Robert Martin Sr. yea, Beth Rupert yea, Dave Smith yea. Motion passed 5-1. Motion by John Synodinos, second by Dave Smith to return to regular session. Vote: John Synodinos yea, Dave France yea, Thomas Bottorf yea, Robert Martin Sr. yea, Beth Rupert yea, Dave Smith yea. Motion passed 6-0. Motion by John Synodinos, second by Robert Martin Sr. to bring the information covered in the letter from Jefferson County regarding their water proposal out on the floor. Vote: John Synodinos yea, Dave France yea, Thomas Bottorf yea, Robert Martin Sr. yea, Beth Rupert yea, Dave Smith yea. Motion passed 6-0. Gary Folden said that negotiations and discussions had been taken place for quite some time on the issue of purchasing water. He said that the negotiations had come down to the following points between the County and Wintersville. 1) Jefferson County would operate and maintain Wintersville’s water and sewer facilities. 2) Wintersville would still maintain ownership of the water and sewer plant 3) County would take over the maintenance and operation of the plant 4) The County would take on the seven employees currently employed full time in the water and sewer departments. 5) The County would charge Wintersville residents the current rates they are being charged until the Toronto plant came on line. 6) A blended rate would be charged to all County and Wintersville water customers after Toronto’s plant came on line. He said the next step in the process would be to have Wintersville’s water negotiations Attorney Dennis O’Toole draw up a contract for review by Council and then have the contract approved by Ordinance with three readings of the Ordinance. During the 3 meetings at which the ordinance was read, residents could ask questions about the contract. Gary Folden said that the negotiating team recommended the terms of the contract as outlined as the best deal for the residents of Wintersville. Chris Becker also said that the Village had no other options than choosing between Steubenville and the County to purchase water. He said that the terms as currently negotiated with the County is the best available option for the Village. Gary Folden said that the main goal of the negotiating team was to obtain the best water at the best rate for the residents. Dean Ferguson, 192 Rex Ave., asked what a blended rate meant. Jack Gilmore from the County Engineer’s Office explained that it meant that all residents buying water from the County would pay the same rates. He explained that initially the County’s proposal was to begin charging Wintersville residents the same rates as current county customers immediately when the County took over Wintersville’s system, however this would have lead to slightly higher rates for customers using the minimum water amounts and lower fees for higher users. Beth Rupert said that this was a chance to work together towards a regional water system and to keep lower rates for everyone. Jack Gilmore also said that the more municipalities and users that are involved in a water system the easier it would be to obtain grants. Matt Parise, 215 S. Avalon Drive, asked if there were numbers available, and if not would there be numbers available (for water and sewer rates) before the County goes on line with Toronto. Jack Gilmore said that he could not give exact rates for water purchased from Toronto, but there was a sliding scale based on volume purchased. Matt Parise asked Jack Gilmore if the rates with Toronto could be higher then the rates the County is paying to Steubenville. Jack Gilmore said that they could be, but because he did not have a crystal ball he could not know exactly what events or price changing factors would happen. Matt Parise asked if the Village currently had a contract with the County to purchase water. Gary Folden said that the Village does have a contract, which calls for water to be purchased for $3.00 per thousand gallons; he said the current contract has approximately 8 more years remaining. Matt Parise asked Jack Gilmore if the Village purchased bulk water from the County, but did not turn the system over to the County would they still be able to keep their rates down with the County. Jack Gilmore said that the County would still get credit for the volume with that type of arrangement. He said that Wintersville’s rate would stay at the $3.00 plus incremental increases. Beth Rupert told Matt Parise that the questions he was asking were premature until the contract between Wintersville and the County was prepared. She also said that purchasing water for some parts of the Village might be difficult once the Village was no longer buying some of its water from Steubenville. Matt Parise said he would like a copy of any agreement about costs outside limits to deliver water. Matt Parise asked when the OWDA loans would be paid off. He was told that the two loans would be paid off in consecutive years, 2011 and 2012. Matt Parise asked how much of a reduction would Wintersville residents see in their sewer rates after the loans were paid off. He was told that the amount of reduction would be $4.89 per thousand gallons of water purchased. Beth Rupert said that this was a complex discussion and that Council would be looking at the best interests of the residents when a decision was made on this issue. Matt Parise said that he was not sure that the Village would want 60% of the residents paying over $9.00 more per month for water than they are currently paying. He urged Council to look at all the facts before they made a decision. Beth Rupert said that the Village was still in contract negotiations with these variables. Matt Parise asked if there were costs being paid by the water and sewer funds that would have to be paid by the General Fund once the County took over the operations. Dave Smith said that there would also be debt that the County would be absorbing for the Village. Brent Gamble, 133 Ellsworth, said he was working on his Eagle Scout Communications and Citizenship Badge and in addition to being required to attend the Council meeting said he needed a copy of a financial statement from the Village. Mike Payne gave him a copy of the August 2003 Financial Statement that had been distributed previously by him to Council Members. John Synodinos said that he did not see any difference in the buying of bulk water from the County versus turning the water and sewer system to them. He said that he did not want to give up the leverage of controlling the sewage system. He said that all Council members were trying to do what each thought was in the best interest for the Village. He also said that this is one of the most important decisions the Village would ever make. John Synodinos said that some of the expenses currently paid from the water and sewer would end up being paid by the General Fund. He said that the Village might end up increasing the wage tax or laying people off to keep the General Fund balanced if the General Fund could not absorb all these expenses. Chris Becker said that his goal is to put together a water and sewer contract that is in the best interest of the Village and also to make sure whatever agreement is made is legal. Dave France said that he was pleased the was the discussion took place in executive session regarding the water contract issue. He agreed that Matt Parise had brought up some good points regarding this issue, but added that there may be costs in the future that Wintersville may be able to avoid if they turn the operations over to the County. He also said that the idea of starting towards reigionalization of water is the way to go. He said that other municipalities may see the need to follow toward rationalization. Robert Martin Sr. said that the County could also have costs in the future as well. Mayor Cochrun asked if anyone in the audience had questions concerning the water issue. Betty Stinard, Powells Lane, asked Jack Gilmore if County water customers including Wintersville would be responsible for expenses incurred by the County for tying into other municipalities. Jack Gilmore said that he did not know of any other municipalities that wanted to come to the County that did not already have lines connected to them. Betty Stinard asked what the cost of water would be if Wintersville stayed with Steubenville. Gary Folden said that it would be $4.86 per thousand gallons. Old Business Beth Rupert asked what the status of having the Council meeting taped. Gary Folden said he was waiting for a name from her, Beth Rupert asked if Gary Folden had obtained a list or a map of the landowners off of Route 22 she had asked for. Gary Folden said that it was available in his office. Beth Rupert asked if any new stop signs had been purchased. Perry Pool said that six new signs had been purchased. Beth Rupert asked what the status of Sam’s Way was. Gary Folden said the Joe Corabi was working with the Bank for financing to put the road in. Chris Becker said that he had researched the lease agreement with the Woodridge tenant and the Village was responsible for the painting and upkeep of the building. Chris Becker said that the Planning Commission variances could be approved by Council through Ordinances, but this would be subject to a referendum by the voters. Beth Rupert asked if a guide could be developed to help the Planning Commission make better decisions. Chris Becker said that they just need to follow the Ordinances. Chris Becker said that Judge Bednar and Judge Corabi were now aboard with the Village and RITA regarding the subpoena process. Gary Folden said the list of delinquent taxpayers has been reduced on RITA’s list from 1000 to 200. Dave France reported that OML would consider coming to our area to put on a seminar on running Village Government if enough individuals were interested, he said he would get additional information on this idea. Gary Folden said the EPA required the Village to name a flood plain administrator. Gary Folden received Council’s approval to have Attorney Dennis O’Toole prepare a draft of a water and sewer contract between the village and the County. New Business Beth Rupert discussed getting together with the annexation committee. Motion by Robert Martin Sr. second by John Synodinos to approve the transfers submitted by the Clerk-Treasurer. Mike Payne discussed briefly the handouts he had prepared for Council. One of the handouts illustrated the fact that the Village is maintaining its commitment to spend wage tax funds according to the manner approved by voters. He also discussed the fact that the General Fund balance may end up less that the previous year end due to decrease in revenues. Mike Payne also briefly discussed his handout on what utility rates need to be next year if the County does not take over the utility operations. He said the sanitation rates need to be increased by $1.00 from $10.00 per month to $11.00 unless Council wanted to begin transferring funds from the General Fund to balance the Sanitation shortfall next year. He also said that despite increasing rates 25% last year (from $8.00 to $10.00 per month) the revenues were only up about 8% because of a change in the way apartments were now billed only the dumpster rate. Mike Payne also said that the funds available for street repairs were almost exhausted for the year and that Council needed to consider using the General Fund balance to finish some of the projects or put off some repair projects including Beechwood Blvd. until next year. Motion by John Synodinos, second by Robert Martin Sr. to pay bills as funds become available. Vote: John Synodinos yea, Dave France yea, Thomas Bottorf yea, Robert Martin Sr. yea, Beth Rupert yea, Dave Smith yea. Motion passed 6-0. Motion by Robert Martin Sr., second by Dave France to adjourn. Vote: John Synodinos yea, Dave France yea, Thomas Bottorf yea, Robert Martin Sr. yea, Beth Rupert yea, Dave Smith yea. Motion passed 6-0. Next regularly scheduled meeting is Thursday September 18th at 7:00 PM with a meeting with ODOT representative and Sabina Drive residents beginning at 6:00 PM. Robert Cochrun, Mayor Mike Payne, Clerk/Treasurer