MOUNT VERNON — Looking to the future, Mount Vernon City Council members discussed contracting with an outside company to manage Hiawatha Water Park.
Noting that managers Joy and Jerry Clinger do a wonderful job, Council member Amber Keener said there are people who work for the city because they love the city, not necessarily because it is a sustainable career.
“In light of that, I think it’s very important for the city to consider who would take over if and when they were to leave,” she said. “Because financially, the work that they do cannot be replaced at the salary that they do it.”
In a series of pool-related meetings, discussion turned to outside management and what a company could do in terms of marketing and hiring for lifeguards along with other operational activities.
“[A management company] would offload some of the city’s responsibility not only in hiring lifeguards, but in paying into Ohio Public Employees Retirement System, which is a lot of overhead for something that teenagers and young adults might end up never using,” Keener said. “These groups that do the management are professionals, and it was really the consensus in some places that they would be able to do what we do more efficiently.”
Keener said outside management would also lighten the load on city staff and reduce liability.
“If Joy and Jerry were to leave, [Director of Public Works] Tom Hinkle could not take on the entirety of pool maintenance in his department right now,” she said.
The management company would be responsible for operations, including hiring lifeguards, providing swim lessons, monitoring chemicals, and coordinating with Knox Public Health. The city would still run concessions and provide landscape maintenance.
Auditor Terry Scott estimates year-to-date pool revenue at $293,540 with a few more days to go in the 2022 season. Outside management costs are estimated to be between $250,000 to $325,000.
Excluding debt service, which is paid through the general fund, pool operations cost the city around $175,000 a year. Outside management would save the city the cost of OPERS and pool chemicals; that money could be reallocated to pay the management company.
Council members agreed to seek Request for Proposals to “see what’s out there.” Council expects to make a decision by October whether to contract for outside management.
In its legislative session on Monday, council took the following actions:
•Passed emergency legislation creating a fund to hold OneOhio opioid settlement money (initial payment of $7,500)
•Authorized the sale or disposal of two vehicles no longer needed: a 2016 Chevy Impala from the police department and a 2012 Ford Connect van from the parks department
•Approved the appointment of Dan Brinkman to the Knox County Health District Board
•Approved appropriations: $35,000 from the Mental Health and Recovery Board for drug court and $50,000 in rental income from the city’s four properties
•Appointed Leslie Buehrer to the city’s recreation board
•Postponed indefinitely an ordinance revising the process for residential use in an Office-Industrial zoning district
•Gave a second reading to legislation authorizing the Historical Review Commission to designate historical structures outside of the historic district boundaries
•Passed as an emergency an ordinance fixing the compensation of the probation administrative assistance/deputy clerk in the Mount Vernon Municipal Court
•Gave a first reading to an ordinance annexing 0.562 acres on Martinsburg Road into the city
In a Planning and Zoning Committee meeting, Mayor Matt Starr updated council on the removal of lime sludge from the city’s west lagoon.
In another P&Z committee meeting, council discussed the tax abatement for historic homes under the city-wide Community Reinvestment Area (CRA). Council requested Law Director Rob Broeren to prepare an amendment for next council meeting stating that multi-family projects are not eligible for the historic tax credit.
