Aurora City Council & COW - 8/15/22

Aurora Ohio City Council and Committee of the Whole, August 15, 2022

Committee of the Whole (COW): The meeting was called to order at 6:00 pm by Chairman John Kudley, Jr with all council members present: Reva Barner, Brad Duguay, Peter French, Sarah Gilmore, Harold Hatridge, George Horvat, Dennis Kovach, Scott Wolf. There were 10 City Officials and Employees present and 6 people in the gallery (3 of these people were making sure the new Cameras and Monitors were working properly).

Mayor Ann Womer Benjamin gave the Finance Director’s Report, a positive report accepted by Council.

There were 15 Ordinances proposed for action that evening including:

• Employees Generally- giving the Acting Fire Chief and Acting Finance Director salary “bumps”, a promotion in the water department and hiring a sports monitor;
• Creating a new full time position of  Administrative Coordinator-Human Resources and City Hall, combining 2 part time positions;
• Appointing Matt McBirney as Acting Fire Chief;
• Appointment of Stan Smith to ABR (Architectural Board of Review); Establish Opioid Settlement Fund to handle money from pharmaceutical companies;
• Lawn Maintenance and Water and Sewer Assessments to be put on property tax bills;
• Agri-Sludge Contract;
• Contract for Asset Management Software;
• Contract with Ronyak Paving for Chip and Seal West Jackson Road (not a dedicated road but for the safety of residents and safety forces, the city is paying for the road maintenance;
• Bulk Salt purchase (winter is coming);
• Easement agreement with Walden Company for new sanitary sewer;
• Allocation of ARPA funds;
• Contract with Stantec Architecture for Spring Hill Barn Repairs and the sale of Property- vacant lot B on Page Rd.

There were 4 Ordinances proposed for 1st Reading including:

• Tax Abatement for K&M Tire Company (They are increasing their square footage and employees);
• Accept the rates and amounts determined by the Budget Commission for Real Estate Tax Rates;
• Permission to auction multiple city assets no longer needed;
• Amend Chapter 161 updating “Employees Generally” to add Martin Luther King Day as an official Holiday.

The meeting adjourned at 6:30 pm.

City Council (CC): Council President George Horvat called the meeting to order at 7:00 pm with all Council members present.

No one spoke at the Public Hearing concerning an Ordinance amending “Revocation and Appeals” of Aurora’s Codified Ordinances.

The Mayor made a presentation to the 12U Aurora Athletics Baseball Team with a 52/10 win/loss record. 5 young men (half the team) and 4 adults were present.

There were 2 Executive Sessions lasting 13 minutes to discuss sale of property and pending litigation.

The Mayor reported on the naming of Assistant Chief Matt McBirney as Acting Fire Chief, upcoming City events, The Bow Hunting/Deer Lottery, and other meetings and events she had attended.

Previous Ordinances dealing with “Revocation and Appeals” of Codified Ordinances was passed on 3rd reading with rules suspended for voting the same day as a Public Hearing;

Flooring for the Aurora Memorial Library was adopted with rules suspended;

and an Ordinance amending “Storage of Rubbish, Junk and Junk Vehicles” to increase the penalty, giving the city more leverage to enforce the Property Maintenance Standards (There was some discussion on this since it was voted to suspend rules and adopt it on 1st Reading. One citizen spoke to this- requesting it go to 2nd Reading so she had more time to look into it). It was adopted unanimously.

The 15 Ordinances proposed for Action that evening were adopted with rules suspended.

The 4 Ordinances on 1st Reading went to 2nd Reading.

Citizens’ Comments: One citizen commented again about wishing she had more time to study the amending of the Property Maintenance Standards- understanding why it was being done but objecting to how quickly it was brought before council and approved.

Council Members’ Comments: Councilman Kudley commented that mowing along 43 was bad and requesting flashing lights be put up on East Blvd for Valley Christian Academy; Mr.French thanked April for the good job with the new AV system. Mr. Hatridge has been getting complaints about the new traffic patterns and signals. Service Director Harry Stark said the signalization is not yet complete and could take a few more months or longer to complete and asked for patience on the part of the community. Ms Barner requested the new Library Hours be posted on the City’s Sign Board.

Council went into Executive Session at 8:11 to discuss personnel. It re-adjourned at 8:40 to announce that Marie Lawrie is the new Clerk of Council.

​The meeting adjourned at 8:44 pm.