CENTERBURG — Council members added an ordinance to Monday’s village council agenda authorizing Village Administrator Teri Wise to contract for new street lights.
V3 Companies will install 15 new street lights on Main Street. The cost is not to exceed $215,000.
V3 submitted two bids: $205,000 and $215,000.
“They would basically be pretty and be like a flashlight on a pole,” Wise said of the lights in the $205,000 bid. “So they’re not going to give us the intensity that we need for a street light.”
Council members opted to pay the additional $10,000 for functional street lights vs pretty lights and passed the ordinance as an emergency.
The Heart of Ohio Business Association will pay $5,000 of the cost, and the Knox County Foundation will kick in $120,725 in strategic planning funds.
Council members also waived the three readings and passed emergency legislation authorizing Wise to award the bid for street paving to Small’s Asphalt Paving.
The contract shall not exceed $265,000, which is the engineer’s estimate. Small’s bid was $241,149.15.
The paving consists of two parts: Phase Three of the Ohio Public Works Commission project on South Hartford ($139,266.65) and miscellaneous paving throughout the village ($101,882.50).
In other legislative action, council members gave a first reading to legislation re-establishing a Shade Tree Commission.
Wastewater treatment plant
During two recent power outages at the plant, workers manually reset the control panel due to a defective UPS power backup system.
The village ordered and installed a new backup power unit and will replace two more. The current backup units were installed in 2016.
Wise is re-evaluating installing a canopy-type sludge cover. Previous discussions about the City of Mount Vernon taking the village’s sludge did not pan out.
“So we’re going to have to be more due diligent with our sludge and keep the water out of it,” Wise said.
Wise is also reviewing data for lift station flows to the treatment plant. She requested a five-year history of flow coming from the Hazel Heights subdivision.
“That’s an important key factor for me when it comes to the Croton station,” she explained.
Village administrator
Wise noted Main Street traffic will be shut down to one lane Sunday morning for the demolition of the Inn Town Restaurant. Knox County Sheriff’s deputies will direct traffic.
Plans call for the building to be demolished from the rear, so the alley behind the restaurant will also shut down.
The village sent 29 assessment letters for utility billing with a pay-by date of July 31. Ten paid, and 19 ($10,279) were assessed. Another seven were sent on July 15, with three paying by the Aug. 31 due date and a fourth paying partially.
Miscellaneous:
•Facebook followers increased by 54 individuals.
•Staff will complete I&I (inflow and infiltration) inspections this week and continue to fix potholes.
•Eighty-three samples tested from the wastewater treatment plant complied with EPA requirements.
•Wise provided information on fraud training that the Ohio Auditor of State requires.
Legal
Council members gave a second reading to an ordinance vacating a portion of Spring Alley. Council already vacated most of the alley. Solicitor Kyle Stroh’s concern is if the village needs to access drain tiles in that area, it would be on private land.
He noted that it makes no sense to vacate the land and then establish an easement to access it when the village already owns it.
Councilman Tom Stewart said the council should be very careful about vacating land from this point forward “because we do not know what access we will need.”
“I don’t like to see the village give up property because you never know,” Wise agreed.
•Stroh is working with Hilliar Township on a possible annexation agreement for property Freda Ramey owns at 206 N. Clayton St.
•Dates have not been set for the closings on buying the library and Interchurch properties.
•Stroh will bring draft legislation to the September meeting for a moratorium on the sale of recreational marijuana.
COJFD
Fire Chief Mark McCann reported the Central Ohio Joint Fire Department received $154,322 in grants last month.
The department received a $105,794 Ohio Ambulance Transportation Impact Grant for recruitment and retention during COVID-19. The money comes from the state’s Coronavirus State Fiscal State and Local Recovery Fund.
McCann will use the funds to bring salaries to a competitive level.
The $8,000 is a 90/10 reimbursement grant from Ohio Means Jobs to pay for one individual’s paramedic school.
The $40,528 is a 75/25 Bureau of Workers Compensation equipment grant. McCann will use it to buy stair chairs.
•The fire truck is still being repaired.
•Mayor Greg Sands asked whether McCann has talked with school officials about ways to smooth out traffic flow when school lets out each day. He suggested there might be a way to either control the timing of traffic signals or use different routes leaving the school.
Revitalization
Councilwoman Saundra Dove reported the committee is bringing three new members up to speed on the village’s strategic plan. Topics for future discussion include improving communication, parking, and processes for commercial businesses and the fire department.
Mayor Sands encouraged council members to take the Together Knox survey. The information will be used to create the 2024 Knox County Comprehensive Plan.
Council members went into executive session to discuss personnel.
