Mantua – Last month, Mantua Village Council held a special meeting prior to the regular Council meeting. At the brief public hearing, those in attendance had the opportunity to take part in the discussion regarding a change from industrial to residential classification for several parcels on Orchard Street.
In the regular meeting that immediately followed, Mayor Linda Clark asked Council’s approval to hire Greg Thomas as the new Village Administrator. Thomas will replace Maryann Fabian, who will be assuming the role of Fiscal Officer for the Village.
Next, Tia Rutledge from Portage County Water Resources presented Council with the Department’s Annual Report, as well as their Water and Sewer Surcharge Evaluation. She noted that with so many improvement projects underway, that the Department recommends no change to the current surcharge to Village residents. Rutledge noted that while they are still investigating grants to help finance system improvements, the pool of resources is small. She noted that CT Consultants in currently conducting a rate study, but that like most companies, the cost of doing business has increased.
Rutledge noted that while the team is short-staffed, they endeavor to do things as economically as possible. Some projects are delayed, as equipment is “hard to get”. She noted that replacing corroded lines in the Village will be a phased project; the system is currently being modeled to determine a plan. In all, she noted they’ve received ‘lots of positive comments” from residents who are pleased that the County is managing their service, with some noting they “get more for less”. The agreement between the Village and the County has been in place for a year and a half. Rutledge noted, “at some point, costs will go down.”
In her Mayor’s report, Clark shared details of the County Budget Committee meeting regarding sales tax received by municipalities from the State. Clark noted that representatives from the Villages of Hiram and Mogadore were also present, but that the County Commissioners were not. She shared that Mantua agreed to retain the current percentage, as long as the Commissioners agreed to remain at 39.8%. She noted that the review took place five years since the last discussions on the matter, which Clark noted were “heated”. The group agreed that the next discussions about tax revenue distribution will take place in 10 years.
In other news, Mayor Clark noted that the Wine & Chocolate Walk that was originally scheduled to take place downtown would not take place in September. She noted that organizers hoped to hold the event at another time but had no new date has been chosen.
The next regular Council meeting will take place on Tuesday, September 20th at 6:30 pm; residents are encouraged to attend.
