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 Bartels, Scott K. Gordon, Janet Heidkamp, Leah M. Pyter, Emily Saving, and Dan E. Schlichting. Also present were Joshua C. Mehling, Clerk-Treasurer, L. Leah Reibel, Solicitor, and Steven Orenchuk, Street Commissioner. At 7:02 p.m., the Mayor called the meeting to order.

Minutes

The minutes of the Council meeting of September 19, 2022 were not read since each member had received a copy. Bartels 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

Gordon moved and Bartels seconded the motion to approve the payment of bills and to accept the financial reports for September 2022 as submitted by the Clerk-Treasurer. The motion carried (6-0).

Report of the Mayor

  1. The Mayor announced that the Fall Festival had been successful and was well attended. The Clerk-Treasurer stated that he was willing to willing to distribute hot dogs or pizza in the Circle Park on Halloween if the weather permitted. Orenchuk inquired as to if there had been any discussion of moving Trick or Treating to Saturday evening rather than Monday evening. The council decided to keep it on Monday evening due to tradition and the fact that Worthington will be Trick or Treating that evening as well.
  2. The Mayor reported that he had received a new contract for mosquito control services with a 1.5% cost increase from the previous year. He will distribute this to council members in advance of the November meeting.
  3. The Mayor suggested that the Village purchase new flags for the entrances along High St. Saving moved to authorize up to $300 for the purchase of two new flags and Bartels seconded the motion. The motion carried (6-0).

Report of the Solicitor

  1. The Solicitor stated that she is working on the resolutions for several annual contracts and that these would be on the November agenda.
  2. The Solicitor stated that she is waiting for the final cost from American Legal Publishing for codification of recent ordinances.

Report of the Street Commissioner

  1. The Street Commissioner stated that the trees and brush had been removed from the right of way for the Lift Station and that the new generator had been installed, though it is not yet connected.
  2. The Street Commissioner stated that he had heard from a company that is interested in the sewer relining project and that he expects there to be a great deal of interest in this project.
  3. The Street Commissioner reported that he had received a question about the Village’s regulations regarding curb cuts from the builder of the new house on Olentangy Blvd. The Planning Commissioner will provide these to the builder.

Report of the Planning Commissioner

The Planning Commissioner was not in attendance. The Clerk-Treasurer reported that the Commission had met in October and approved a Certificate of Appropriateness for the addition of a patio at 155 Southington.

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 October and that the November meeting may need to be canceled as well. The Committee is waiting for updated information from Burgess & Niple prior to sending out the Request for Proposals for the sewer lining project in December or January.

  1. Web Manager

The Web Manager was not in attendance.

  1. Communications Committee
  1. Gordon, the Chair of the Committee, stated that the estimated cost to print the directories is $1,287. Pyter moved to authorize the expenditure of up to $1,300 for the printing of the directories and Saving seconded the motion. The motion carried (6-0).

 

  1. Resolution 2022-09

Resolution 2022-09 – A Resolution to Provide Legal Counsel for the Village of Riverlea had its second reading.

  1. Village Salaries

Saving and Heidkamp updated Council on their review of salaries for Village officials. They have compared salaries in Riverlea to those in other comparable municipalities and discussed the issue with officials in some of those municipalities. They also compared the salaries at the time they were approved to the expected current values taking into account cost of living adjustments. They still have discussions planned with other officials and will bring this information to Council when it is complete.

New Business

  1. Resolution 2022-11

Resolution 2022-11 – A Resolution Accepting the Amounts and Rates as Determined by the Budget Commission and Authorizing the Necessary Tax Levies and Certifying them to the County Auditor was introduced by Bartels. Bartels moved and Schlichting seconded the motion to waive the three readings of the resolution to submit the resolution to the County Auditor in a timely manner. The motion carried (6-0). Schlichting moved and Pyter seconded the motion to approve the resolution. The motion carried (6-0).

  1. School Levies

Orenchuk inquired as to whether the Village Council has taken a position on issues such as the upcoming school levies in the past. The Mayor stated that he did not feel it would be a wise decision for the Council to take a stance on controversial issues not directly related to Village business. The Solicitor stated that she would research whether the Council had the ability to take such a position, and Council can discuss the issue at a later date.

Expenses

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

$440.00 – Gudenkauf Corp – Water & gas line locating

$907.98 – Kathy McClintock – Fall festival reimbursement

$291.03 – Sue Bachmann – Fall festival reimbursement

$120.00 – Allison Macerollo – Fall festival reimbursement

$ 80.00 – Sarah Mehling – Fall festival reimbursement

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, November 21, 2022, at 7:00 p.m. at Thomas Worthington High School.

Adjournment

There being no further business, Bartels moved and Saving seconded the motion to adjourn.  The motion was approved unanimously (6-0). The meeting was adjourned at 7:52 p.m.

 

Joshua C. Mehling, Clerk-Treasurer

Eric A. MacGilvray, Mayor