Mayor Nathan Frisch called the December 08, 2022 Village of Attica Council regular meeting to order at 7:33 PM.
Roll Call: Ed Beamer, Tim Bulger, Lynn Love, Louis Sanders, Kirk Stanfield
Others Present:
Approval of Warrants: Motion by Councilman Bulger, seconded by Councilman Beamer to approve the warrants for payment. Vote: 5-0. Motion carried.
Approval of Minutes: Motion by Councilman Bulger, seconded by Councilman Beamer to approve the minutes. Vote: 5-0. Motion carried.
Written & Oral Communication: None.
Public Safety: Councilman Bulger asked if there were any reports from the sheriff’s office. FO Hatfield agreed to follow up with Deputy Chuck.
Streets & Properties: None.
Parks: None.
Trees: None.
Fire: Councilman Bulger reported the committee will meet next week.
EMS: Councilwoman Love reported she attended two meetings related to ems yesterday to review contracts and handle other business. The district voted to pay volunteers $4.50 per hour. There are two coordinators left in Seneca County, one in Republic/Bloomville with 23 volunteers and one in New Riegel with 25 volunteers. The Joint Ambulance District set up a checking account today.
Cemetery: Councilman Sanders reported the committee will meet next week.
Personnel: Councilman Beamer spoke with the Solicitor regarding the handbook and overtime language. The Solicitor provided an amendment to the handbook ordinance.
ORD 2022-19 An Ordinance Adopting Amendments to the Personnel Policies for Employees
Councilman Beamer moved to suspend the three-read rule, Councilman Love seconded. Vote: 5-0. Motion carried.
Councilman Beamer moved to declare an emergency, Councilman Love seconded. Vote: 5-0. Motion carried.
Councilman Beamer moved to adopt ORD 2022-19, Councilman Love seconded. Vote: 5-0. Motion carried.
The 2023 health insurance proposal was presented for review and approval.
Councilwoman Love explained that the Finance Committee decided the renewal price was the best option to keep the employee out of pocket portion at a minimum.
Councilwoman Love moved to approve the renewal option CU-V5/ RX k35Y GOLD PREMIER PLAN, Councilman Sanders seconded. Vote 4-1. Councilman Stanfield voted no. Motion carried.
Councilwoman Love let Council know in past years it was discussed to gradually increase the employee portion of health insurance until it was an 80/20 split. Currently, employees pay 10%, but the intention was that they would pay 15% in 2023. Councilwoman Love asked Council to discuss further. Councilman Beamer expressed that he thought the intention was to keep the employees out of pocket expense low. No decisions were made.
Zoning Commission: Councilman Beamer pointed out that the old bank property on 224 that was recently purchased is in Venice Township, so no concern of ours.
Finance and rule: Cash balance: $1,459,174.99. All funds includes CDs and reserved or restricted funds, and debt reserve funds. The November bank reconciliation was presented for review and approval.
FO Hatfield presented Ordinance 2022-18 2023 Temporary Appropriations for the first reading.
She did point out that the water budget is not balanced, it is currently $12,000 negative. FO Hatfield did report moving some capital expenses such as meters out of 5101 for 2023 hoping Council would agree to cover them out of either the water enterprise account or rescue funds.
Water & Sewer: FO Officer Hatfield reminded Council that water and sewer rates were set to increase in January. From her perspective water rates needed to be increased, but Sewer was not a necessity. Councilman Beamer reported to Council that he and the Mayor met with Makeever and Associates to discuss the Villages intentions related to selling the water plant. The consultants thought they could prepare the bid documents for a reasonable price. This project would require several easements due to infrastructure running on private property. Councilman Beamer sent Makeever’s Office the requested documentation. Councilman Stanfield expressed frustration with the direction this process is moving in. He was of the opinion Council should just post a for sale sign and advertise “Water Plant for Sale”, he believes the bid process is unnecessary.
Councilman Beamer stated Gary intends to leave his position effective January 1, leaving the Village 3 weeks to find an operator. He inquired with a few entities about a contract operator and stated we could expect to pay between $150-$175 an hour. Councilman Beamer also heard the EPA does not have anyone available for emergency situations. Councilwoman Love asked if he checked with Aqua. Councilman Beamer stated that is not a hard number. Councilman Sanders asked if Dakota had obtained his license yet. Councilman Beamer stated it wouldn’t do us any good at this point because we need a class 3, not a class 1. Councilman Beamer recommended going to Gary with an offer he can’t refuse. Councilman Sanders asked what is an offer he can’t refuse? Councilman Beamer stated starting at $50 and moving up from there would be his suggestion. Councilwoman Love specified she thought that Councilman Beamer was supposed to get an answer from Gary what his expectations were for the first of the year as far as pay. Councilman Beamer explained that Gary is sick of the drama and ready to leave. Councilman Bulger stated to find out what it would take to appease him. The Mayor and Councilman Beamer both maintained they could not get Gary to give them a salary, so going to him again and requesting he tell them what he wants is not going to work. Councilman Bulger said his recommendation was to start at $60 an hour and go from there. After a little more discussion, Councilman Beamer stated he will get with Gary tomorrow morning and follow up with Council following. Before concluding the discussion, Councilman Beamer asked if Council had suggestions for a timeframe for Gary after January 1st with the pending bidding of the facility and other factors. They discussed starting with a few months.
Village Website & IT: none
Unfinished, Old Business and New Business: Councilman Beamer asked about the signs for North Central Electric. Councilman Sanders asked if there was any resolution for Smitty’s parking. Mayor Frisch stated we didn’t have the correct signs, but Gary is supposed to order some. Councilman Beamer followed up on the timeclock discussion. FO Hatfield let him know what Councilwoman Love found was a subscription service that would be $2 a month, per employee.
Councilman Bulger asked about stop signs to create a 4 way stop in an alley near his place where his neighbor put up a privacy fence, which causes visibility issues.
Next meeting: Thursday, December 22, 2022 at 7:30 PM.
Motion by Councilman Beamer, seconded by Councilman Bulger to adjourn the meeting. Time: 8:54 PM. Vote: 5-0. Motion carried.
