The Council of the Village of Riverlea met on the above date at the Old Worthington Library. The following Council members were present: Mayor Eric A. MacGilvray, Scott K. Gordon, Janet Heidkamp, Emily J. Saving, and Dan E. Schlichting. Also present were Joshua C. Mehling, Clerk-Treasurer, Leah Reibel, Solicitor, and William Charles, Acting Street Commissioner. Guest of Council was Corey Shields. At 6:45 p.m., the Mayor called the meeting to order.

Minutes

The minutes of the Council meeting of May 15, 2023 were not read since each member had received a copy. Saving moved and Schlichting seconded the motion that the minutes be approved as submitted by the Clerk-Treasurer. The motion carried (4-0).

Report of the Clerk-Treasurer

Saving moved and Schlichting seconded the motion to approve the payment of bills and to accept the financial reports for May 2023 as submitted by the Clerk-Treasurer. The motion carried (4-0).

Report of the Mayor

  1. The Mayor reported that street sweeping had taken place throughout the Village on May 23.

 

  1. The Mayor reported that Insight Pipe Contracting, LLC had begun the sewer relining work throughout the Village.

 

  1. The Mayor reported that the easement for the property at 5691 Olentangy had been executed and filed with the County Recorder. The fence around the lift station generator has also been installed and will be stained in August.

Report of the Solicitor

  1. The Solicitor stated that she had drafted a resolution to reinstate the Communications Committee. This will be on the August Council agenda.

 

  1. The Solicitor stated that she had drafted a resolution to amend the Village pay rates and that this would be discussed later in the meeting.

Report of the Street Commissioner

  1. The interim Street Commissioner reported on the situation with the sewer line at 131 W Southington. He mentioned his previously submitted proposal that the Village cover the cost of the work that would be necessary to make the connection from the sewer main up to the right of way line, and that the homeowner would cover the costs associated with connecting from the right of way to the house. Resident Corey Shields presented two proposals to do this work that he had requested. The first quote was through Eramo and Sons Builders in the amount of $16,200 for the Village portion, the second quote was from CST Utilities and was in the amount of $14,950 for the Village portion. The Mayor noted that the Eramo quote did not include replacement of the curb and the CST quote did.

The Street Commissioner noted that Eramo had done some work for the Village as part of the sewer relining project in 2013 and that CST does work for the Village in cleaning out the lift station and a few other projects. Both companies have done good work for the Village. He stated that he would feel comfortable going with CST given the difference in price, though there may be some changes in final cost for either company when the project is complete. He recommended that the Village approve the project at a cost not to exceed $20k with the right to discuss further if costs exceed this amount. Either contractor would contract with and bill the Village directly. Saving moved and Schlichting seconded the motion to approve the contract from CST Utilities at a cost not to exceed $20k.  The motion was approved unanimously (4-0).

  1. The Interim Street Commissioner stated that he has been doing work with the hydraulics at the lift station to get the right flows during normal and peak volumes. He recommends that the Village begin work to upgrade the lift station as soon as possible given the age and condition of the current system.

Report of the Planning Commissioner

There was no report from the Planning Commissioner.

Comments from Residents on Agenda Items

There were no comments from residents on agenda items.

Old Business

  1. Committee on Infrastructure

Schlichting, the Chair of the Committee, stated that the committee did not meet in June as the sewer relining project is underway.

  1. Web Manager

There was no report from the Web Manager.

  1. Communications Committee

 

  1. Gordon, the Chair of the Committee, stated that he is waiting to reinstate the Communications Committee. Gordon introduced Resolution 2023-09 – Amended Resolution to Re-Authorize the Communications Committee to Support the Work of Village Council, and to Appoint Members Thereto and gave the resolution its first reading. Jon Ankrom will be added to the resolution as a committee member before its second reading.
  2. The Chair stated that the Village directory is currently at the designer and will be ready soon.

New Business

  1. Ordinance 05-2023

Ordinance 05-2023 An Ordinance to Provide for the Compensation of Village Councilmembers, Certain Elected Officers, and Appointed Officials of the Village was introduced by Saving, amended to show the below amounts, and had its first reading. The Solicitor recommended that the Village fill the Marshal position, which is listed on the document, or adjust the Village Ordinances to remove this position, as it is currently required. Gordon recommended that the Village maintain the position. Saving proposed that the new Mayor have the option of which direction to go with the Marshal position, as they could decide whether to fill or eliminate the position based on how they choose to handle their duties.

Saving proposed that the below amounts be adopted as the new annual compensation rates beginning on January 1, 2024. The rates were determined by applying an inflationary factor to the last time the rates were updated for each position.

Mayor – $9,500

Clerk-Treasurer – $15,500

Council Members – $700

Council President – $1,000

Planning Commissioner – $2,500

Street Commissioner – $2,500

Marshal – $500

The Web Manager line will be struck from the ordinance as the position is an independent contractor.

  1. Resolution 2023-08

Resolution 2023 – 08 – A resolution to Request the Franklin County Budget Commission to grant the 0.65 Mills in Available Inside Millage to the Village of Riverlea, Ohio was introduced by Schlichting. Schlichting moved and Gordon seconded the motion to waive the three readings of the resolution to submit the resolution to the Franklin County Auditor in a timely manner. The motion carried (4-0). Schlichting moved and Saving seconded the motion to approve the resolution. The motion carried (4-0).

  1. 2024 Tax Budget

Village Tax Budget 2024 was introduced by Gordon. Gordon moved and Heidkamp seconded the motion to waive the three readings of the budget in order to submit it to the county in a timely manner. The motion passed (4-0). Gordon moved and Heidkamp seconded the motion to approve of the budget. The motion passed (4-0).

Expenses

Saving moved and Gordon seconded the motion to authorize the following expenditures:

  • $1,200.00 – Emily Saving – Lift station fence reimbursement
  • $1,500.00 – Columbus Power Cleaning – Street sweeping
  • $ 00 – Gudenkauf Corp – Water & gas line locating

The motion was approved unanimously (4-0).

Comments from Residents on Non-Agenda Items

There were no comments from residents on non-agenda items.

Next Meeting Announcement

The next regular meeting will be Monday, August 21, 2023, at 6:30 p.m. at the Old Worthington Library.

Adjournment

There being no further business, Schlichting moved and Gordon seconded the motion to adjourn.  The motion was approved unanimously (4-0). The meeting was adjourned at 7:53 p.m.

 

Joshua C. Mehling, Clerk-Treasurer

Eric A. MacGilvray, Mayor