Garrettsville – Village officials present at the village council meeting on May 13th were Village Solicitor Michele Stuck, Mayor Rick Patrick, Fiscal Officer Deb Wordell and Councilpersons Tom Hardesty, Chris Knop, Jeff Kaiser, Larry Beatty, Tom Collins and John Chambers. The meeting and public hearing were held via Zoom (courtesy of the Villager) and live-streamed on Facebook due to COVID-19 safety restrictions.
Prior to starting the regular meeting, council held a public hearing on Ordinance 2020-08, an ordinance relating to water retention basins in the village and their maintenance. Originally this was intended to focus on the Fox Hollow development, however Water Department Superintendent Jeff Sheehan had informed Planning Commission of multiple basins in the village. Hardesty shared with the audience that council would be tabling the ordinance at the regular meeting to allow time to factor in the other basins. Nobody had comments or questions about the ordinance, so the hearing was closed and the regular meeting proceeded as scheduled.
As the first order of business ordinance 2020-08, the retention basin ordinance discussed at the public hearing, was tabled in a unanimous vote.
The minutes of the April 6th & 8th meetings were reviewed, and approved. Financial reports and income tax receipts were also reviewed. The village’s income tax collection is currently down $108,000. Wordell explained that “because the deadline was extended to July 15th, all [the village] can do at this point is assume the collections will be delayed.” Wordell went on to remind council that as Hardesty had mentioned at the April meeting, “the schools are the largest withholding employer in the village, and because they are still working [the village] shouldn’t see a significant decline in withholding taxes for the year.” Patrick advised that Council would not have a clear picture on the situation until August as collection isn’t until July 15th.
Hardesty shared that Wordell and Donna Love had looked at retail businesses in the village and did not see a substantial impact in withholding. “The bulk of the money comes in the form of individual taxes,” said Hardesty, referring to Garrettsville residents who do not work in town. He also added that while some retail is down right now, Sky Plaza IGA and other ‘essential’ stores are operating pretty close to normal. Hardesty then walked council through some of the major income streams for the village: income tax (about 67% of the budget), property tax (about $150,000/yr), gasoline tax (about $150,000/yr). He predicts that other than income tax, village revenues should come out of the shutdown about the same. Knop suggested that with less gas being sold due to everybody staying home, there may be less revenue from the gas tax. Hardesty believes that the state’s recent increase in the tax amount should cancel out the decrease. Hardesty stressed that “the village will be in sound shape,” and that “we would not be without funds.”
Minimizing Costs Where They Can
• Given the current financial uncertainty, Hardesty informed council that they would need to set aside almost $170,000 of the funds allocated for road resurfacing. Patrick is hopeful that the village can do extra roadwork in 2021, if the budget looks better towards the end of the year. Hardesty said he would like to try to get some roadwork in before the end of the year if the financial situation looks better in August.
• The Police Department is doing what they can to keep staffing expenses down, and are minimizing overtime where possible. Chief Tim Christopher requested that the village’s current auxiliary officer be moved from unpaid status to a paid part-time position. This would allow the department to offset any potential overages caused by vacations, sick leave, etc. Council approved hiring the patrolman at part-time status as this would be the most cost-effective move.
• The Street Department reported that one employee has resigned, and the planned addition of a part-time employee for maintaining the ball fields has been put on hold.
While reviewing the bills, Knop asked Wordell for some clarification on a bill to the cemetery. Hardesty and Wordell explained that the cemetery fund was billed for parts for equipment and hydrants. Council accepted a motion accepting the bills.
An Injunction on Windham Street
Council discussed the injunction against Randall Berry requested by the Planning Commission. Stuck explained, “This has been an ongoing thing” and referred council to the memo she had sent. There are several issues in play. Randall has been advertising multiple apartments (four units based on the signage placed in front of the building) in a building that had its conditional zoning certificate revoked – making any apartments in the building illegal at this time (only two were permitted by the revoked permit — the fire inspection showed five). The Planning Commission authorized and recommended that Stuck file an injunction in court.
Beatty asked if Council should give Randall the benefit of the doubt and wait until his third inspection to see if he has corrected the multiple safety violations on file. Stuck shared that the issues go beyond the fire inspector’s report, and explained that there are also building code and zoning violations. “In my opinion, the simple fact is that he ignored the Zoning Inspector’s revocation of his conditional use permit and has put out for rent signs anyway. He is violating our zoning laws regardless of whether he’s corrected any fire violations,” said Stuck.
Beatty also mentioned that Randall is selling food again, but acknowledged that the village didn’t want to impede any business owners from reopening. Randall obstructing the sidewalk right of way was another issue discussed by Planning on May 11th. Beatty also worries that pursuing Randall on the violations now may result in the eviction of the current tenants.
Knop explained to Beatty, that the Planning Commission felt that “This has been a consistent problem, continually, every month.” Knop shared that Randall’s conditional use permit has been revoked for some time, yet he continues to operate as he wants. Planning Commission is worried that Randall’s continual actions may lead to other businesses feeling that they should not need to follow the rules either. “He’s pushed the buttons, and he has pushed them too many times,” said Patrick, “Tom [Hardesty] has been down there, and tried to work with him through the application process. He half-assed the application on the day of the planning commission meeting [..] He toys with us all the time.”
For Patrick, it all comes down to safety. Years ago there was a fire on Main Street (well before the 2014 fire) and a resident died. Patrick feels that it’s important to do the right thing so the village would not be seen as negligent in the eyes of the community.
Council agreed unanimously to file an injunction.
Following the vote on the injunction the digital-floor was opened for public commentary. Village resident John Crawford inquired about the status of the Liberty Street sidewalk project. Hardesty stated that he hoped to get to it very soon.
Round Table Wrap-up
Beatty thanked the Water Department and the BPA for continuing to provide quality water to the village residents. Patrick added, “you’ve really gotta commend Jeff [Sheehan] for his hard work. When the South Street water main broke he was right down there in that hole.”
Kaiser thanked Wordell for the expanded financial information council now receives. Kaiser also asked about Memorial Day activities. Patrick shared that the Weekly Villager would be assisting the Village in creating a Memorial Day broadcast that would run on the Facebook page and website on Memorial Day. It will include speeches by Dr. Mike Carlson, Iva Walker, John Kable and Mayor Patrick. Archival footage of the GHS Marching Pride will be used for the playing of the National Anthem and Taps. With the schools closed and social distancing in place, there will be no band or parade. The video will be available beginning at 9:00 AM on May 25th. Patrick attended a Mayors Association conference and it sounded like most other communities have also planned virtual ceremonies.
Kaiser also asked whether Garrettsville Summerfest would be cancelled this year. Patrick informed council that while no determination has been made yet, the Summerfest committee was likely to vote to cancel the event at their June 1st meeting. The Chamber of Commerce has already raised funds to purchase the fireworks display for use on May 31st as a Senior Send-Off at GHS.
Knop shared information he received about the insurance pool and a couple of lighting options for Village Hall. Council decided to purchase indirect LED lighting for the space which should be easier on the eyes and much more energy efficient. Funds for the project come from the NOPEC grant the village received.
Collins mentioned the Taco Bell has started to take shape, and complimented Planning Commission on working with Taco Bell to make it happen.
Patrick shared that the Chamber of Commerce’s new digital sign and enclosure is going up. The enclosure will be faced in brick and includes two built-in benches. The new sign will make it easier to share Chamber of Commerce or village news and events.
With no further news to discuss the meeting was adjourned.
