Special Council Meeting

Friday, September 13, 2002

Meeting called to order by Mayor Robert E. Cochrun.

Roll Call:  John Synodinos present, Dave France present, Dave Smith present, Robert Martin Sr. present,
Beth Rupert present, Gene Pool present.

Officials:  Mayor Robert E. Cochrun present, Solicitor Christopher D. Becker absent, Clerk Treasurer
Mike Payne present, Administrator Gary R. Folden present.

Moment of Silence

Pledge of Allegiance

Mayor Cochrun said that he had called this special meeting to discuss how to handle residents with delinquent
water bills.  He said that he had given the order to shut off resident's water for those who had not paid their bills.

Mayor Cochrun said that Council needed to discuss this situation and decide how they wanted to handle it.  He
said he did not want the State Auditors to fine the Village for not following the established Ordinances and for
not have policies in place to be consistent with those who do not pay their bills.  He said that Dee Petrella told
him that currently residents have 60-75 days to pay their bills.

John Synodinos said he disagreed with the things the Mayor said.  He said that the Ordinance stated that the
Village may disconnect those who do not pay, but that it was optional.  He said that the auditors cannot tell
Council what to do; they can only recommend that the Village follow their guidelines.  He said that the Mayor
took it upon himself to give residents only 1-day notice last Friday before they would have their water shut
off.  He said that three Councilpersons had called in their votes to stop the Mayor from shutting off water of
residents who did not pay their bills.  He said that this procedure of calling in votes has been done in the past.

Dave France told the Mayor that he should keep a 5 minute time limit on the time that Council members talk.

Robert Martin Sr. said that giving people only a 1-day notice before shutting off their water is not right.
He said people have circumstances that prevent them from paying their water bills.

Mayor Cochrun said that he has compassion for these people, but that residents with large bills that were
unpaid require action on the part of the Village.  He said that Solicitor Chris Becker agreed with the action he took.

Beth Rupert said that they needed to address the issue at hand.  She said that she knew of agencies that might
be able to offer assistance to some residents on their bills.  She said that Dee Petrella cannot continue to
make special arrangements for people who do not pay their bills due to liability issues.  (Correction see minute
of Thursday September 19, 2002) She said that she thought the Village was down to around 10 residents who have
yet to pay their bills.  She said that her and Gary could attempt to help residents with their bills by
contacting agencies who might offer some assistance.

Dave Smith said that the pressure is on Council members to quickly develop a practical policy to deal with
this situation.

Jill Auteri, resident, said that her husband works at the mill and that his salary had been cut in half.
She said that water rates are a reason why she will not buy a house in Wintersville, even though she thinks
it is a nice place to live.  She said that she will pay off her balance on her bill but needed a few months
to do so.  She said her water bills are almost $200 per month.

Dave France said that this is such an important issue that he felt Council should deal with the issue tonight
instead of waiting for the Ordinance committee to meet.

Robert Martin said that the issue must go to the Ordinance committee first.

Beth Rupert suggested that Council members meet at a Saturday workshop to work on developing a new Ordinance
for this matter.  She said that until a policy was developed she recommended that the Village have an open
end policy for payment of bills and not shut off anyone's water.

Juanita Alford said that her water bill had been paid but thought that it was a shame to red tag residents
whose water was to be shut off.  She said people need to be making an effort to pay their bills but they need
also to be looked at in hardship cases.

Beth Rupert said she had contacted other municipalities on their policies regarding shut off notices.
She said these municipalities were issuing shut off notices every day.

Mayor Cochrun said that no one's water would be shut off until this issue was resolved.

Motion by Beth Rupert, second by Robert Martin to have a Council workshop session for the development of
an Ordinance dealing with the Village's utility policy and procedures on Saturday. September 21, 2002 at
12:00 (Noon).

Vote:  John Synodinos yea, Dave France yea, Dave Smith yea, Robert Martin Sr. yea, Beth Rupert yea, Gene Pool yea.

Motion passed 6-0.

Motion by John Synodinos, second by Robert Martin Sr. to rescind the previous motion dealing with the
enforcement of the water Ordinance passed at the September 5, 2002 meeting.

Vote:  John Synodinos yea, Dave France nay, Dave Smith yea, Robert Martin Sr. yea, Beth Rupert yea, Gene Pool nay.

Motion passed 4-2.

Motion by John Synodinos, second by Robert Martin sr. to adjourn.

Vote:  John Synodinos yea, Dave France yea, Dave Smith yea, Robert Martin Sr. yea, Beth Rupert yea, Gene pool yea.

Motion passed 6-0.

C. Michael Payne     Franklin Gene Pool
Clerk Treasurer      Acting Mayor