Hartville mayor says more revenue is vital to the village
Hartville Village Council
Monday meeting
KEY ACTION: Mayor Cynthia Billings delivered the 2023 state of the village report.
DISCUSSION: Billings described 2022 as a “year of much turmoil” that included the resignation of three Council members and a village solicitor. “We discussed street paving, a new police building and replacing the decorative lighting [downtown] but it was a year when nothing got done,” Billings said. “Hopefully this year things will settle down and we’ll get more done. But we will need more revenue.”
Billings acknowledged the village’s seven failed attempts to pass an income tax increase and said Council and the administration must communicate better with residents.
"Nobody likes to pay more taxes, but it is our responsibility to let our residents know [the village’s needs].”
Regarding paving in particular, Billings said, residents must understand that many communities in which paving is done on a regular basis have tax-supported funds dedicated to paving. She said the village this year will again attempt to complete projects like the downtown street lighting replacements, the “realistic estimate from our engineer for street paving” and a new police facility. “[But] with our current revenues, none of this will happen.”
OTHER ACTION:
Approved re-bidding the village’s 2023 paving program to include Erie Avenue, Wagner Court, Miller Avenue N.E., Grand Trunk Avenue, and the entrance and exit to Danbury Glen, with and alternate bid for Lake Avenue. Village Engineer Sam Awadallah said the same project was previously bid with an engineer’s estimate of $423,000 for the base bid and $255,200 for the alternate bid and the village received three bids between $463,000 and $348,000 and $187,000 and $272,000 respectively. Council chose not to accept any of the bids at that time.
Approved using American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to replace 15 decorative light poles in the village determined by the street department as being in immediate need of replacement for safety reasons at a cost of up to $4,500 per pole. Councilman Jim Sullivan proposed replacing 30 of the poles with the ARPA funds but Councilman Frank Gant questioned the expenditure instead of needed road repairs such as the entrance to Danbury Glen neighborhood.
Amended the village employee handbook to include Juneteenth (June 19) as a holiday by a 5-1 vote, with Councilwoman Bev Green voting no. Council previously approved the American Legal Publishing Ohio Basic Code 2023 edition, which lists Juneteenth as one of 10 recognized legal holidays, as the code of ordinances for the village, in conflict with the village employee handbook. In 2022, Council adopted the Ohio Basic Code without the inclusion of Juneteenth, leading in part to the resignation of two Council members.
UP NEXT: Meets for its next regular meeting at 6:30 p.m. Feb. 13 at Village Hall, 202 W. Maple St. and online at www.facebook.com/VillageofHartville.
Brian Lisik
This article originally appeared on The Repository: Hartville mayor says more revenue is vital to the village
