This month’s meeting began with Hiram Mayor Anne Haynam conducting a swearing in ceremony for Hiram Fire Department’s newest Firefighter/EMT Jaden Bihari. After congratulating Bihari, Council moved on to the Public Comment portion of the meeting.
At that time, Carrie Lingro spoke on behalf of her family’s business, the Hiram House Salon. She noted that the business, located at 11613 Garfield Road, has been a good tenant at the Village-owned property since 2008. She noted that the business is more than just a renter, but part of the Hiram community. She expressed her family’s shared desire to work with the Village to reach a mutually beneficial lease agreement, as the current 5-year contract will be expiring in November.
In other news, several commentors attended the meeting to share their concerns over proposed legislation under discussion to create a humane program to manage the Village’s free-roaming cat population. It was noted that the dozen cats in this ‘colony’ are the result of abandonment by college students and apartment residents.
In his report, Hiram Police Chief James Clemens shared that concerns were raised to officers and to him about the feral cats from a health and safety aspect for people and pets. Concerns centered on the safety of students and residents, should other wildlife like racoons, coyotes, and black bears become attracted to the food left out for the cat colony. He noted issues with damage caused to soft-topped vehicles was also a costly problem.
There are currently a group of individuals that feed the free-roaming cats in multiple ‘zones of activity’. When possible, individuals from the cat colony are trapped and spayed or neutered.
It was noted that the issue of free-roaming cats in the Village isn’t a recent development; the proposed legislation was based on legislation that was discussed back in 2013. Council President Chris Szell noted, “There’s a reason we don’t feed wild animals. It’s because of safety issues for people and their domestic animals. Council member Chris Perme asked for input from outside groups or organizations who can help with the issue. Mayor Haynam noted that even if legislation passes, the Village cannot cause feeding to cease due to the animals’ dependence on the food.
In related news, Fire Chief Bill Byers noted that the Portage County Health District will conduct drops of rabies bait throughout the county, including in Hiram. The operation will take place from August 17th to September 16th. The ONRAB vaccine is enclosed in a 1” X 2” blister pack filled with a rabies vaccine and covered with a sweet-smelling dark green waxy coating. The bait contains a rabies vaccine that if consumed by racoons, skunks, or other wildlife, should vaccinate the animal against the rabies virus. It is noted that the bait does not contain rabies virus but includes a gene from the rabies virus that causes the animal that ingests it to produce antibodies that protect them from rabies infection. According to program information on the Ohio Department of Health’s website (odh.ohio.gov), ingesting the vaccine will not harm your pet, although eating a large number may temporarily cause vomiting or diarrhea. For more information on that program, visit the Ohio Department of Health website for details on the oral rabies vaccination program.
The next regularly scheduled Village Council meeting will take place on Tuesday, September 16th at 7 pm.
