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, Charles T. Bell, Janet R. Heidkamp, Leah M. Pyter, and Emily J. Saving. Also present were Greg Bonk, Web Manager, William Charles, Street Commissioner, Bryce Jacob, Planning Commissioner, Leah Reibel, Solicitor and Joshua C. Mehling, Clerk-Treasurer. At 6:35 p.m., the Mayor called the meeting to order.

Minutes

The minutes of the regular Council meeting of October 27, 2025 were not read since each member had received a copy. Pyter moved and Amick seconded the motion that the minutes be approved as submitted by the Clerk-Treasurer. The following vote was recorded on the motion: Yea: 4, Amick, Bell, Pyter, Saving; Nay: None; Abstain: 1, Heidkamp. The motion carried (4-0-1).

Report of the Clerk-Treasurer

Bell moved and Saving seconded the motion to approve the payment of bills and to accept the financial reports for October 2025 as submitted by the Clerk-Treasurer. The following vote was recorded on the motion: Yea: 5, Amick, Bell, Heidkamp, Pyter, Saving; Nay: None; Abstain: None. The motion carried (5-0).

Report of the Mayor

  1. The Mayor thanked Suzanne Surface for her work in organizing and running the event in Circle Park for Halloween. The event was successful and attended by many people.
  2. The Mayor stated that both of the levies that had been on the ballot in November passed with over 90% majorities. In addition, Council members Bell and Saving were reelected for new terms and resident Jeff Mussman was elected as a new Council member. This leaves one vacancy on Council for a four-year term beginning in January 2026. The Mayor will send a newsletter to residents reminding them of this opening and encouraging them to volunteer.
  3. The Mayor reported that he is reaching out to prior social volunteers for anyone who is interested in running the luminary event for the Village, but had not yet received interest and would likely coordinate the event himself. He asked that any residents who are interested in helping to organize this event to reach out to him.
  4. The Mayor stated that he had not received the October report on Worthington Fire Department activity within the Village.
  5. The Mayor stated that he had received the October report on Worthington Police activity within the Village. There were 126 runs and a call from the landlord of an apartment building reporting a bullet hole found in a range after the resident moved out. There were no bullet holes found in the surrounding walls. There was also a disturbance call from a resident reporting a possible driveway sealing scam, though an investigation showed that there was no scam involved. A resident also reported a dead deer near High St.
  6. The Mayor mentioned that he had received an email from a resident reporting a street light out near the ravine on Riverglen. The Street Commissioner will contact AEP about getting this repaired.
  7. The Mayor reported that the Village had received an updated contract from Worthington for 2026 Police services. The contract includes a 5.5% increase due to pass through of expenses and there are no other changes to the contract.
  8. The Mayor stated that the Clerk-Treasurer had contacted the Franklin County Auditor’s office about lowering the millage rate used to determine collections from residents for the Infrastructure Bond Fund. These collections are used to repay the loans issued for the 2019 infrastructure project. The millage rate currently stands at 7.0 mills and was calculated using the initial estimates of loan repayment costs, though grants received by the Village lowered these costs. The Auditor’s office expressed willingness to lower this rate; the rate will be determined by the end of the year.
  9. The Mayor reported that he had signed up to receive a package on how to complete a municipal cybersecurity policy for the Village. This package will provide templates and consultations and will assist the Village in completing such a policy in 2026.

Report of the Solicitor

  1. The Solicitor stated that the Ohio Municipal Attorneys Association will present a session on cybersecurity and will provide templates as well. The Solicitor will gather information on this and begin work on the necessary legislation.
  2. The Solicitor stated that she is waiting on the updated proposed fence ordinance language from the Planning Commission members.
  3. The Solicitor mentioned that she had received a proposed contract for 2026 police services from the Worthington Law Director. There is a 5.5% increase in the rate due to pass through costs, but otherwise no change in the language. Amick moved to authorize the Mayor to sign the contract and Bell seconded the motion. The motion was approved (5-0).

Report of the Street Commissioner

The Street Commissioner stated that he had completed a list of items for the Village to purchase and have on hand in case of an emergency at the lift station. The total cost for the 16 items on the list is estimated to be $20-$22K. The Street Commissioner will distribute a spreadsheet with the information on these items to Council members after the list is discussed at the December Infrastructure Committee meeting.

Report of the Planning Commissioner

  1. The Planning Commissioner stated that the Commission had met in November and had approved the following applications:
  2. The addition of a cedar gate at the front of the yard and an aluminum fence at the rear of the property at 315 Melbourne.
  3. The removal of an existing sliding door and widening of the opening to comply with ADA requirements at 141 W Riverglen.
  4. The replacement the front door, garage door, and windows as part of the larger project at 235 W Southington.
  5. The Planning Commissioner reported that a Stop Work Order had been placed on the work at 235 W Southington as renovations had started without approaching the Planning Commission. The homeowner has been very cooperative with the Village and much of the work has been approved. The homeowner is attempting to maintain the architectural integrity of the home throughout the redesign process, though some changes have been made to ensure that the project meets current codes, including requirements from Franklin County that the windows be changed to allow egress, which will cause expansion of the windows into the current water table.
  6. The Planning Commissioner reported that the Commission continues to work on revisions to the fence ordinances, using the Dublin fence ordinances as a basis. The goal is to make the language simpler and clearer for residents to understand. Pyter recommended that the Village recommend using landscaping for privacy between properties rather than fences. The Planning Commissioner stated that the Commission is preparing a list of bushes to recommend.

The Planning Commissioner invited Council members to contribute any opinions that they may have on the process. Amick stated that it may be helpful to add a preamble to the beginning of the code, expressing the opinions and preferences of the Village.

Comments from Residents on Agenda Items

There were no comments from residents on agenda items.

Old Business

  1. Committee on Infrastructure

There was no report from the Chair of the Committee.

  1. Web Manager

The Web Manager stated that he had updated the website software and that the next month would include renewal of the website hosting.

  1. Communications Committee

There was no report from the Chair of the Communications Committee

  1. Record Retention

The Records Retention Committee did not meet and will set a new meeting date.

  1. Ordinance 03-2025

Ordinance 03-2025 –2026 Annual Appropriation Ordinance (Village) had its second reading.

New Business

  1. Resolution 2025-20

Resolution 2025-20 – A Resolution Authorizing the Mayor of the Village of Riverlea, Ohio to Contract with the City of Worthington, Ohio and the Worthington Police Department to Provide Police Services in the Village was introduced by Pyter and had its first reading. Pyter moved to waive the three readings of this resolution in order to sign the contract in a timely manner and Saving seconded the motion. The motion passed (5-0). Saving moved to approve the resolution and Bell seconded the motion. The motion passed (5-0).

  1. Native American Skeleton

The Solicitor stated that she had contacted the Ohio History Center about the Native American skeleton that had been uncovered during work along the Olentangy. No further work had been performed to determine the age. The preference of the Center would be to rebury the skeleton where it was found.

  1. Tree Replacement

Bell stated that he had purchased two maple trees from Oakland Nursery and had them installed in the Circle Park to replace the crabapple tree that had been removed. In addition, Bell stated that he felt that the maple tree on the southwest side of the park will likely not bloom in the spring and would need to be replaced as well. Watering bags will be used to water the new trees in the spring.

Expenses

Amick moved and Pyter second the motion to approve the below expenses:

$5,350.00 – Chuck’s Septic Tank – Lift station excavation

$413.67 – Tom Bell – Tree reimbursement

$550.00 – American Legal Publishing – Code of Ordinances web hosting

$560.00 – Gudenkauf Corp – Water & gas line locating

$397.00 – Ohio Municipal League – 2026 Dues

$248.77 – Suzanne Surface – Halloween reimbursement

The motion was approved (5-0).

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 December 15, 2025, at 6:30 p.m. at the Old Worthington Library.

Adjournment

There being no further business, Pyter moved and Bell seconded the motion to adjourn.  The motion was approved unanimously (5-0). The meeting was adjourned at 8:15 p.m.

 

Joshua C. Mehling, Clerk-Treasurer

Daniel E. Schlichting, Mayor