The Council of the Village of Riverlea met on the above date at the Circle Park in the Village. The following Council members were present: Mayor Eric A. MacGilvray, Marc J. Benevento, Scott K. Gordon, Kathy E. McClintock, Ted C. Miller, Leah M. Pyter, and Dan Schlichting. Also present were Joshua C. Mehling, Clerk-Treasurer, L. Leah Reibel, Solicitor, Bryce Jacob, Planning Commissioner, and William P. Charles, Street Commissioner. Guests of Council were Steven Orenchuk, Emily Saving, and Eleanor Siemens. At 7:01 p.m., the Mayor called the meeting to order.

Minutes

The minutes of the Council meeting of June 21, 2021 were not read since each member had received a copy. McClintock moved and Gordon seconded the motion that the minutes be approved as submitted by the Clerk-Treasurer. The following vote was recorded on the motion: Yea: 4, Gordon, McClintock, Pyter, and Schlichting; Nay: None; Abstain: Miller. The motion carried (4-0-1). Benevento was not yet in attendance at the time of this vote.

Report of the Clerk-Treasurer

Miller moved and Pyter seconded the motion to approve the payment of bills and to accept the financial reports for June 2021 as submitted by the Clerk-Treasurer. The motion carried (5-0). Benevento was not yet in attendance at the time of this vote.

Report of the Mayor

  1. The Mayor notified Council that the September Council meeting will likely be held at Thomas Worthington High School.
  2. The Mayor stated that there are three candidates for the four open Council seats on the November ballot. These candidates are Janet Heidkamp, Leah Pyter, and Emily Saving. The Mayor will need to appoint someone to fill the additional vacant seat in January 2022.
  3. The Mayor stated that the school district had added a new elementary school bus stop within the Village, located at Southington & Dover, and thanked Jennifer Bedell for working with the District to get the stop added.

Report of the Solicitor

  1. The Solicitor noted that the meeting would include the third reading of the noise ordinance and the second reading of the public records request policy resolution.
  2. The Solicitor stated that she had drafted a sense of Council resolution regarding restrictive covenants in certain Village deeds and that she would circulate this to Council members for their review.

Report of the Street Commissioner

  1. The Street Commissioner reported that there had been a minor overflow at the lift station during the recent power outage in the Village. He is researching the purchase of two backup pumps that Council had authorized in June.
  2. The Street Commissioner reported that he had found the equipment and parts needed to install a No Parking sign on Crescent Ct. The total for all of these parts was just under $500. Benevento moved to authorize the expenditure of no more than $500 on these parts and McClintock seconded the motion. The motion passed (6-0).

Report of the Planning Commissioner

  1. The Planning Commissioner noted that he had drafted a letter for the new residents of 5809 Olentangy to notify them that the walkway in front of the house is not to be used as a driveway. The Solicitor will review this before sending.
  2. The Planning Commissioner updated Council on the undeveloped parcel located between 121 and 141 Southington. The Planning Commission approved a COA in September 2020 for Fairfax Homes to build a house on this lot, with the condition that the mature trees on the lot not be removed unless construction was certain to proceed. In preparation for construction, the developer removed trees from the lot, but the Planning Commissioner stated that he has recently learned that the developer is no longer planning to build and is trying to sell it. The developer recently contacted the Planning Commissioner requesting a refund of the street bond that was placed with the Village in October of 2020. Given that the developer has removed trees and not built on the lot, the Planning Commissioner inquired whether the Village might be able to withhold these funds. The Solicitor stated that she would like to review the minutes of the Planning Commission from the September meeting before issuing a recommendation.

Comments from Residents on Agenda Items

There were no comments from residents on agenda items.

Old Business

  1. Committee on Infrastructure

 

  1. Benevento, the Chair of the Committee, reported that the Committee had received two bids from contractors interested in the Lift Station project. The first bid was $5,600 in parts and $2,200 in labor, for a total of $7,900. The second bid was for $5,300 in parts but did not include an estimate for labor. Neither quote included an estimate for installation of a gas line and fencing. The Committee will continue to research these bids before deciding how to proceed.
  2. The Chair of the Committee reported that they are considering combining the sewer relining project with the Lift Station generator project in an effort to seek external funding assistance. Combining the two projects would bring the total cost to about $450K and make the Village more eligible to receive funding. The recommendation of the Committee is to seek funding to reline the entire system and if no assistance is received, to make repairs to the system where they are most needed.

 

  1. Committee on Communications

Gordon, the Chair of the Committee, stated that he is waiting to receive the files for the Village directory.

  1. Committee on Nuisances

There was no report from the Chair of the Committee.

  1. Web Manager

There was no report from the Web Manager.

  1. Ordinance 02-2021

Ordinance 02-2021, An Ordinance to Amend the Village of Riverlea Zoning Code, to Regulate Noise had its third reading. Pyter moved and McClintock seconded the motion to approve the ordinance. The motion passed (6-0).

New Business

  1. Tree Trimming Quotes

The Mayor informed Council that he had received two quotes for the trimming of trees within Circle Park. There are some differences between the two quotes, notably in how the two parties would like to treat the large spruce located near the center of the park.

  1. The quote from Russell Tree Services was for a total of $3,485 and would remove the spruce tree.
  2. The quote from Kevin Masters Arborist Services was for a total of $4,712 and would treat the spruce tree to attempt to improve its health. Masters also included a quote for $2,681 to trim the trees within the ravine

Benevento moved to approve the quote from Russell Tree Services and Gordon seconded the motion. The motion passed (6-0). Benevento recommended asking Russell for a quote on trimming trees in the ravine as well.

  1. Fall Festival

McClintock inquired as to whether Council would be interested in reinstating the Fall Festival for 2021. Council agreed that it would not be appropriate to hold this event given ongoing public health concerns. McClintock stated that the Village would still plan to hold the Luminaria event in December.

Expenses

McClintock moved and Miller seconded the motion to authorize the following expenditures:

$660.00 – Gudenkauf Corp – Water & gas line locating

$14,749.98 – Sharon Township Board of Trustees – 2020/21 Snow removal

$159.45 – Josh Mehling – Supplies & Postage

The motion was approved unanimously (6-0).

Comments from Residents on Non-Agenda Items

  1. Resident Steven Orenchuk addressed Council to discuss the deer population within the Village and surrounding area, feeling that it has gotten too large. Fellow resident Eleanor Siemens also spoke to the same issue. The Mayor stated that Council had discussed this issue previously and that hunting within the Village or neighboring park did not seem to be an option. The Mayor stated that he would inquire with the City of Worthington whether sterilization of these deer might be an option.
  2. Resident Steven Orenchuk addressed Council about Rush Run Park. He stated that he has witnessed tents set up within the park and that the park needed to be cleaned up. The Mayor stated that Worthington Police have been cooperative about patrolling the park and responding to issues when requested and that residents can organize a group to assist with park cleaning. Orenchuk stated that he would investigate organizing volunteers to assist with this cleaning.

Next Meeting Announcement

The next regular meeting will be Monday, September 20, 2021 at 7:00 p.m. with a location to be determined.

Adjournment

There being no further business, McClintock moved and Miller seconded the motion to adjourn.  The motion was approved unanimously (6-0).  The meeting was adjourned at 8:23 p.m.

 

Bryce Jacob, Planning Commissioner

Josh Mehling, Clerk