The Council of the Village of Riverlea met on the above date at Thomas Worthington High School. The following Council members were present: Mayor Eric A. MacGilvray, Nicholas B. Bartels, Scott K. Gordon, Janet Heidkamp, Leah M. Pyter, Emily J. Saving, and Dan E. Schlichting. Also present were Joshua C. Mehling, Clerk-Treasurer, Leah Reibel, Solicitor, Bryce Jacob, Planning Commissioner, and Steven Orenchuk, Street Commissioner. Guests of Council were residents Doug & Ann Metz, Kyle Dy, and Therese Schumacher. At 7:03 p.m., the Mayor called the meeting to order.

Minutes

The minutes of the Council meeting of February 21, 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 (6-0).

Report of the Clerk-Treasurer

Heidkamp moved and Pyter seconded the motion to approve the payment of bills and to accept the financial reports for February 2023 as submitted by the Clerk-Treasurer. The motion carried (6-0).

Report of the Mayor

  1. The Mayor reported that representatives from Sharon Township and the City of Worthington had held several meetings, which he also attended, concerning the proposed fire & EMS levy for Riverlea and unincorporated Sharon Township residents. The two sides have reached an agreement to structure a request for additional funding in two phases:

 

  1. The first phase would place a levy on the ballot in November 2023 for an annual increase of $500K, about half of the initial request.
  2. The second phase would vary the amount of the levy depending on when the Sharon Township Trustees decide to place it on the ballot:
    1. If placed on the ballot in 2026, the levy would be for an annual increase of $370k
    2. If placed on the ballot in 2027, the levy would be for an annual increase of $450k
  • If placed on the ballot in 2028, the levy would be for an annual increase of $550k

Once the second phase is passed, the City has agreed not to approach Sharon Township for additional increases for at least five years. Residents would have two chances to pass the first phase of the levy, and until the end of calendar year 2028 to pass the second phase, before the contract with the fire department is considered to be in breach. Sharon Township Trustees will discuss and vote on this proposal at their regular meeting on April 5.

 

  1. The Mayor stated that a new set of plans for an expanded right of way and temporary construction easements for the new build at 5691 Olentangy Blvd had been drawn up by Burgess and Niple. The owners will review these plans, with the aim of having them approved before or in conjunction with review of the house plans by the Village Planning Commission.
  2. The Mayor announced that the Village would be having its Easter Egg Hunt on Saturday, March 25, to avoid the Worthington Schools spring break. A request for volunteer signups had been posted to the Village Facebook page.
  3. The Mayor reminded Council that they would need to find a new meeting location beginning in June and stated that the 90 day notice window to reserve the Old Worthington Library meeting room begins on March 21. Gordon informed Council that they would likely need to find a new location sooner as preparation work for demolition of the high school building is due to begin during Spring Break in April. Council agreed to make plans to hold the April meeting at Evening Street Elementary School and then the May and June meetings at the library.
  4. The Mayor informed Council that he will not be seeking another term when his position expires at the end of 2023. He reminded members that applications for those who wish to be on the November ballot are due to the Franklin County Board of Elections in August and expressed willingness to help the new Mayor however he can if this help is desired.

Report of the Solicitor

The Solicitor stated that she had drafted a resolution for the Council to authorize the Mayor to sign a contract with Insight Pipe Contracting LLC for the sanitary sewer project.

Report of the Street Commissioner

  1. The Street Commissioner stated that he had denied a request from the contractor of the new home construction at 131 W Southington to place a dumpster in the street as it is against the Village code.
  2. The Street Commissioner reported that the time change on March 12 had caused the alarm at the lift station to trip at 2:30 in the morning and he dealt with that issue.
  3. The Street Commissioner stated that he is working with Bill Charles to get data needed to submit the EPA report on behalf of the Village.
  4. The Street Commissioner reported that the water line lateral at the planned new home at 5691 Olentangy is covered and will need to be dealt with before construction begins.
  5. The Street Commissioner mentioned that the right of way along the sewer line out of the lift station is overgrown and will need to be dealt with at some point.

Report of the Planning Commissioner

  1. The Planning Commissioner reported that he is working with the owners of the lot at 5691 Olentangy on the easement to the Village for the property.
  2. The Planning Commissioner reported that construction of the new home at 131 W Southington had begun.
  3. The Planning Commissioner stated that he had received questions about the driveway apron for the rebuild at 5707 Olentangy and that he would deliver information on apron specifications within the Village to the builder.

Comments from Residents on Agenda Items

Therese Schumacher, resident at 259 W Riverglen Dr, addressed the Council regarding the proposed ordinance to allow parking on West Riverglen to the east of Crescent Court. She stated that she is against the proposed ordinance due primarily to concerns about the safety of children walking and the speed of cars turning off of High Street into the Village

Doug Metz, owner of the apartment building at the southwest corner of Riverglen and High, addressed the Council regarding the proposed ordinance to allow parking on West Riverglen to the east of Crescent Court. He stated that he had sent a letter to Councilmembers reiterating his reasons for requesting this parking and felt that there was more support from Village residents than had been shown by comments at recent meetings. Heidkamp asked Metz how many garages were on the property, and he responded that there were 8 small garages for the 8 units in the building. Heidkamp asked Metz if he had considered moving the retaining wall on the side of the property to make space to add additional parking and he stated that he would investigate it.

Kyle Dy, resident at 36 W Riverglen Dr, addressed the Council regarding the proposed ordinance to allow parking on West Riverglen to the east of Crescent Court. He urged Council to vote against the ordinance, asking members to weigh the risks and benefits of allowing this. He stated that he is concerned about the risk to his children of adding this parking.

Old Business

  1. Committee on Infrastructure

Schlichting, the Chair of the Committee, stated that the committee had not met in March and that they would be setting up an alternate meeting later in the month to discuss awarding the bid for the sanitary sewer project.

  1. Web Manager

There was no report from the Web Manager

  1. Communications Committee

Gordon, the Chair of the Committee, stated that the Mayor had sent an email to Village residents informing them that the upcoming directory would contain email addresses and giving them the opportunity to opt out of having this information published by March 31.

  1. Resolution 2023-05

Resolution 2023-05 – A Resolution to Award the Contract for the Villagewide 2023 Sanitary Sewer Improvements Project to Insight Pipe Contracting, LLC, and to Authorize the Mayor to Enter into an Agreement Therefore, and to Declare an Emergency was introduced by Bartels and had its first reading. Bartels moved and Schlichting seconded the motion to waive the three readings of this resolution in order to sign the contract in a timely manner. The motion carried (6-0). Bartels moved and Schlichting seconded the motion to approve the resolution. The motion carried (6-0).

  1. Ordinance 04-2022

The Council discussed Ordinance 04-2022 –Approving an Amendment to the Riverlea Code of Ordinances 76.04 PARKING PROHIBITIONS, Schedule 1. Parking Prohibited, to Reduce the Parking Prohibition from High Street West to Crescent Court on West Riverglen Drive, which had been tabled at the February meeting.

Schlichting proposed the idea of allowing space for parking on either the north or the south side of Riverglen to the east of the abandoned alley. If parking were allowed within 70 feet of the stop sign at High and Riverglen, this would allow space for 3-4 cars and would be closer to the apartments and farther from the homes of residents who had concerns about adding this parking than the initial proposal contained in the resolution.

Gordon stated that he felt that the decision should be fair for all residents of the Village but that he personally was not in favor of allowing street parking. He stated that he agreed with the proposal offered by Schlichting to allow parking on the east side of Riverglen between the apartment driveway and some distance to be determined from the stop sign.

Heidkamp stated that as pedestrians should walk on the left side of the street, she felt that parking, if added, should be added on the south side of Riverglen for walkers headed toward High Street.

Gordon proposed to amend the resolution to allow parking on the south side of Riverglen to the east side of the apartment driveway. There was some discussion on how far away from the stop sign this parking restriction would be reinstated. Bartels moved and Gordon seconded the motion to table the resolution so that members could examine the area and Ohio Revised Code to determine a reasonable distance to enforce this restriction. The motion carried (6-0).

New Business

None

Expenses

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

$ 330.00 – Gudenkauf Corp – Water & gas line locating

$ 230.00 – Sedgwick – 2023 Workers Comp fees

The motion was approved unanimously (6-0).

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, April 17, 2023, at 6:30 p.m. at the Old Worthington Library.

Adjournment

There being no further business, Bartels moved and Heidkamp seconded the motion to adjourn.  The motion was approved unanimously (6-0). The meeting was adjourned at 8:26 p.m.

 

Joshua C. Mehling, Clerk-Treasurer

Eric A. MacGilvray, Mayor