The Council of the Village of Riverlea met on the above date at the Old Worthington Library. The following Council members were present: Mayor Dan Schlichting, Jeffrey L. Amick, Jeffrey Mussman, Emily J. Saving, and Kent Shimeall. Also present were Greg Bonk, Web Manager, William Charles, Street Commissioner, Leah Reibel, Solicitor and Joshua C. Mehling, Clerk-Treasurer. At 6:30 p.m., the Mayor called the meeting to order.

New Council Member

The Mayor reported that he had received interest from three residents about the remaining open seat on Council and only one person had attended the meeting in person. The Mayor appointed Kent Shimeall as a member of the Village Council for a term expiring on December 31, 2029. Amick moved to accept this appointment and Saving seconded the motion. The motion carried (3-0). The Solicitor swore Shimeall in as a member of the Village Council.

Minutes

The minutes of the regular Council meeting of January 20, 2026 were not read since each member had received a copy. Mussman moved and Saving seconded the motion that the minutes be approved as submitted by the Clerk-Treasurer. The following vote was recorded on the motion: Yea: 3, Amick, Mussman, Saving; Nay: None; Abstain: 1, Shimeall. The motion carried (3-0-1).

Report of the Clerk-Treasurer

Saving moved and Mussman seconded the motion to approve the payment of bills and to accept the financial reports for January 2026 as submitted by the Clerk-Treasurer. The following vote was recorded on the motion: Yea: 3, Amick, Mussman, Saving; Nay: None; Abstain: 1, Shimeall. The motion carried (3-0-1).

Report of the Mayor

  1. The Mayor reported that the Village had recently been in contact with Local Waste Services about recent pickup issues. After pickup on February 16, the LWS recycling truck had left some glass spilled on the road throughout the Village and within two hours of this being reported, LWS sent a street sweeper out to clean up.
  2. The Mayor reported that he had not received the January report from the Worthington Fire Department. He will reach out to the Fire Department for this information.
  3. The Mayor stated that he had received the December report on Worthington Police activity within the Village. There were 145 runs, as well as five house checks, 12 traffic details, and five traffic violators.
  4. The Mayor is discussing the preparation of a cybersecurity policy for the Village with the Solicitor. He will reach out to the Clerk-Treasurer and Street Commissioner for more details on what systems and policies are currently in place.

Report of the Solicitor

  1. The Solicitor reported that she is working with the Mayor on a cybersecurity policy for the Village. The two pieces of this will be the policy itself, which is not considered to be a public record, and the resolution for the Village to adopt this policy.
  2. The Solicitor stated that she had worked with the Worthington Law Director and Police Department to respond to the public records request seeking information on any residents who had been charged with animal cruelty or neglect. There had been no charges filed in Riverlea or Worthington.
  3. The Solicitor stated that she had sent a letter to Local Waste Services detailing issues with pickups throughout the Village in recent months and had spoken with a representative on the same. The representative had stated that the company will attempt to do a better job of staying on top of issues
  4. The Solicitor reported that the Worthington Police Chief will attend the March Village Council meeting to address any concerns that Council may have.

Report of the Street Commissioner

  1. The Street Commissioner stated that maintenance on the lift station had occurred in late January.
  2. The Street Commissioner reported that the streetlight in the ravine has not yet been repaired as AEP had been unable to determine the location of the light pole. He will continue to work with them on the issue.
  3. The Street Commissioner reported that there had been no progress on the discussion of water line replacement or repair for the new construction at 5859 Olentangy.

Report of the Planning Commissioner

The Planning Commissioner reported that the Committee had not met yet, but would hold a special meeting on February 23 to discuss the updates to the zoning code around fences.

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, reported that the Committee had not met in February and that they may meet in March.

  1. Web Manager

 

  1. The Web Manager stated that he had worked on updates, plug-ins and certificates for the website. He will work with new Councilmember Shimeall on updating his information.
  2. Saving noted that the phone numbers for all Council members are listed on the website and requested that her number be removed if possible. The Solicitor stated that there is no requirement for this information to be published on the site and this can be removed. The Web Manager will remove this information.

 

  1. Communications Committee

There was no report from the Communications Committee.

  1. Resolution 2026-02

Resolution 2026-02, A Resolution to Confirm the Interim Appointment of William Charles as Street Commissioner had its second reading.

  1. Ordinance 04-2025

Ordinance 04-2025 – An Ordinance to Amend Chapter 93.42, Notice to Cut Weeds or Remove Litter for the Village of Riverlea had its third reading. Amick moved and Shimeall seconded the motion to approve the resolution. The motion carried (4-0).

New Business

Expenses

Saving moved and Amick seconded the motion to approve the below expenses:

$378.00 – Assured Partners – Crime Policy Renewal

$143.17 – Josh Mehling – Supplies & Postage

$249.22 – Greg Bonk – Hosting & domain renewal

$450.00 – Ohio Municipal Attorneys Association- 2026 Dues

$275.00 – Bill Charles – Lift station maintenance

$11.50 – Dan Schlichting – Council supplies

The motion was approved (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, March 16, 2026, at 6:30 p.m. at the Old Worthington Library.

Adjournment

There being no further business, Amick moved and Mussman seconded the motion to adjourn.  The motion was approved unanimously (4-0). The meeting was adjourned at 7:05 p.m.

 

Joshua C. Mehling, Clerk-Treasurer

Daniel E. Schlichting, Mayor