Mayor Nathan Frisch called the July 13, 2023 Village of Attica Council regular meeting to order at 7:30 PM.
Roll Call: Ed Beamer, Keith Hopple, Kirk Stanfield
Others Present: Billing Clerk, Alyssa Mason
Approval of Warrants: Motion by Councilman Beamer, seconded by Council Hopple to approve the warrants for payment. Vote: 3-0. Motion carried.
Approval of Minutes: Motion by Councilman Beamer, seconded by Councilman Stanfield to approve the minutes. Vote: 3-0. Motion carried.
Written & Oral Communication: Elizabeth McCall, Hailey Schafer, Nicole Lenhart, Lori Richart, and Jessica Chaffee were present to propose a fall event in September and winter event in November. Elizabeth stated she has a store in the Legion. She took the lead on presenting to Council. She stated she spoke to several towns people who stated they would like to see a tree lighting and other activities taking place in town. Elizabeth stated the Christmas festival would include a parade that would lead back to town hall where they would like to do a tree lighting. The Mayor stated he is supportive. He did express to the ladies that a parade would require coordination with the Sheriff’s department since Route 4 and Route 224 are so busy. Otherwise, the ladies would like to have vendors and food trucks uptown during these events. The Mayor asked if they would be organizing these events. Elizabeth said yes. She also stated they planned to have the vendor fees come back to the Village for the use of electric and such. Elizabeth explained the Library is excited about the possibility. Mayor Frisch asked if they had established a meeting night for planning. Elizabeth exclaimed they wanted to get approval from the Village prior to planning any further. She said they were thinking of holding the fall event on September 16 and the winter event on November 25. Councilman Beamer said he thinks they should move forward. Fiscal Officer Hatfield asked if they were expecting anything from the Village to which they replied no. FO Hatfield did express a need to reach out to the Solicitor to make sure the Village is free of any liability.
Diego Sandino and his wife were present of 5081 CR 35. They have a high-water bill which they believe is from a leak. Billing Clerk, Alyssa Mason was present, she asked if they have the leak report or if they could bring it up to the office and she would speak with Dakota. She is going to follow up.
Nicole Lenhart stuck around to let Council know she was interested in being on Council. She is a stay at home mom and she would like to help out. She stated there isn’t a lot for kids to do, so she would like to change that. Mayor Frisch told her to stick around until the end of the meeting and he will swear her in. She said she would. FO Hatfield let her know the term she would be fulfilling would be ending at the end of the year. Nicole also asked about the creek that runs from Honey Creek and around to the reservoir and dumps under the train tracks. She said she lives across from the creek at 111 Woodwind St. They have issues with flooding from the creek overflowing. She stated the Village cleaned it up right up to Chad Legron/Burger’s property last year sometime. She asked who is responsible for the remaining clean-up. The Mayor and Councilman Beamer responded it would be the property owner. Nicole stated they want to tile their yard but don’t want to waste the money if it is not going to help.
Public Safety: None.
Streets & Properties: Councilman Beamer reported Dakota has been busy patching potholes. He plans to work on straightening road signs in coming weeks.
Parks: None.
Trees: Councilman beamer looked at the trees referenced at the last meeting. They are fine but there is one across from Lemmon and Liberty that needs addressed.
Fire: None.
EMS: None.
Cemetery: None.
Personnel: Mayor Frisch stated Jaime needs help fulfilling his hours. He has some appointments coming up that he will need a class 3 operator to cover. He suggested hiring Orin McMonigle who is a class 4 operator for a couple of days a month. Mayor Frisch stated he would like to hire him at $49 an hour. Fiscal Officer Hatfield stated she would like everyone to know that the payroll line in water is at 72%. She said she is not sure if there is additional money in the water fund that could be moved, but she plans to work with Jaime to see what Jaime expects for chemicals and such.
Councilman Hopple stated he was impressed with Orin’s resume.
Councilman Stanfield moved to hire Orin McMonigle at 16 hours a month at $49 an hour effective immediately, Councilman Hopple seconded. Vote: 3-0. Motion carried.
Zoning Commission: The Mayor reported he has some interest in solar panels. He is reviewing the request.
Finance and rule: Cash balance: $1,532,383.65 All funds include CDs and reserved or restricted funds, and debt reserve funds. June Bank reconciliation was presented for approval.
Water & Sewer: Councilman Beamer reported Dakota is having issues with the device they use to locate lines. He told Dakota to get a price to replace. Dakota has been working on locating lines for the paving on Route 4. Councilman Beamer reported Dakota is notating these locates for future reference. Councilman Beamer was pleased with Dakota’s game plan. While investigating Dakota discovered a couple of lines that are unable to be shut off due to being broken. Councilman Beamer directed Dakota to get quotes to repair the shutoff equipment.
Village Website & IT: none.
Unfinished, Old Business and New Business: Councilman Beamer stated the fair board contacted him about using picnic tables for the fair. He told them that should be okay as long as they are put back. Councilman Beamer also stated he wants to amend the handbook to change the certification pays for water and sewer license to read full-time employees rather than village employees. Council was supportive of contacting Heather to amend the handbook. Councilman Beamer agreed to reach out to Heather for guidance on exact language.
Next meeting: Thursday, July 27, 2023 at 7:30 PM.
Motion by Councilman Beamer, seconded by Councilman Hopple to adjourn the meeting. Time: 8:20 PM. Vote: 3-0. Motion carried.
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Mayor Nathan Frisch - Fiscal Officer Natasha Hatfield
Immediately following the meeting Mayor Frisch swore in Nicole Lenhart to replace Lynn Love-term expiring 12/31/2023.
