Mayor Nathan Frisch called the November 10, 2022 Village of Attica Council regular meeting to order at 7:35 PM.
Roll Call: Ed Beamer, Tim Bulger, Lynn Love, Louis Sanders, Kirk Stanfield
Others Present: Solicitor, Heather Heyman Niedermeier
Approval of Warrants: Motion by Councilwoman Love, seconded by Councilman Bulger to approve the warrants for payment. Vote: 5-0. Motion carried.
Approval of Minutes: Motion by Councilman Stanfield, seconded by Councilman Beamer to approve the minutes with requested amendments. Vote: 4-0 with Councilman Sanders abstaining. Motion carried.
Written & Oral Communication: Brenda Okonski was present on behalf of her daughter, Melissa George to follow up on her water bill. She reiterated that her daughter would like to get the bill paid but she is on a fixed income. Mrs. Okonski told Council that Melissa requested to be put on a payment plan last summer but was told no. Councilman Stanfield suggested providing relief by recalculating the bill by using the average regular usage. This spurred discussion regarding picking and choosing which residents get a discount following a leak. Councilman Beamer explained he was in a similar situation in the past due to a toilet leak and was told by Council that they couldn’t do anything to provide relief. Councilwoman Love stated she thought an ordinance would be helpful in providing guidelines to follow. Council explained to Mrs. Okonski that they needed more information and would not be able to make any decisions at this time. Mayor Frisch did tell Mrs. Okonski to have Melissa decide what she could afford to pay monthly to get the ball rolling on payments.
Public Safety: None
Streets & Properties: Councilman Sanders let Council know someone bought the old bank property off of east US 224. The property is currently zoned commercial and he believes the purchaser is interested in using the property for rental apartment units but wants to know if it is allowed or if the zoning can be changed to allow it. Councilman Bulger stated the sewer grate that he brought up the previous two meetings is still plugged.
Parks: Councilwoman Love was happy to report that the Village’s parks levy passed by a small margin.
Trees: Councilman Beamer had an email about a tree on N. Main and Eden St. causing the sidewalk to lift.
Fire: Councilman Bulger reported the committee will meet next week.
EMS: Councilwoman Love reported the joint ambulance district levy passed. She also let Council know three paramedics were hired and currently undergoing training and with more interviews taking place.
Cemetery: Councilman Sanders reported the committee will meet next week.
Personnel: Councilwoman Love asked if any discussions had taken place with Gary concerning his employment with the village after the 1st of the year. At this point there have been no reported discussions.
Zoning Commission: None
Finance and rule: Cash balance: $1,493,331.79 All funds includes CDs and reserved or restricted funds, and debt reserve funds. FO Hatfield asked council to consider amended appropriations for the purchase of chemicals after receiving a large chemical bill. Also, the general fund was short of covering October’s street light bill. FO Hatfield asked to move carryover to cover the expenses. Councilman Stanfield pointed out there is money in Capital Outlay to cover the electric. After further discussion, Councilwoman Love suggested tabling the discussion and requested FO Hatfield check with Gary to see if he had suggestions for covering the chemical expenses. Council will revisit at the next November meeting.
Water & Sewer: Councilman Beamer asked Council for feedback on putting together the bid package for selling the water and sewer operations. They agreed it would probably be best to hire a professional consultant to prepare the bid package to avoid the liability of missing important details. This prompted Council to question whether or not they should keep the sewer operation. Mayor Frisch questioned how the sewer would be billed considering it is currently billed based off of water usage. Councilwoman Love suggested asking the potential bidders if they would be willing to bill the sewer for us. Councilman Beamer also mentioned his concerns about zoning setbacks related to a lot split that would allow the Village to maintain the outbuilding in front of the water treatment plant. No final decisions were made. The discussion will continue.
Village Website & IT: none
Unfinished, Old Business and New Business: Councilwoman Love reported she found a software program called “when I work” for employee time keeping purposes that she would like the FO to review. She plans to present to Council soon.
Next meeting: Thursday, November 22, 2022 at 7:30 PM.
Motion by Councilman Bulger, seconded by Councilwoman Love to adjourn the meeting. Time: 8:35 PM. Vote: 5-0. Motion carried.
