Aurora City Council & COW (SPECIAL MTG)- 9/9/24

Aurora Ohio City Council and Committee of the Whole
Special Meeting prior to Committee of the Whole
​September 9, 2024

Special Meeting: The meeting was called to order at 6:00 pm by Council President George Horvat with all Council members present. There was a 48 minute Executive Session to discusss the acquisition of Real Property. The meeting adjourned at 6:51.

Committee of the Whole (COW): The meeting was called to order at 6:54 by Chairman John Kudley with all Council members present: Reva Barner, Brad Duguay, Peter French, Sarah Grdina Gardner, George Horvat, Dennis Kovach, John Seitz and Scott Wolf. There were 10 City Officials and Employees present. There were 2 citizens present.

Minutes from August 12, 2024 were adopted with R. Barner and S. Wolf abstaining.

 There were 4 Ordinances proposed for action this evening on 1st Reading:

• An Ordinance amending “Employees Generally” to reflect changes in compensation for 3 employees.
• An Ordinance for the Purchase of a 2025 Dodge Durango for the Police Department in the amount of $43,359.00.
• An Ordinance accepting the proposal of American Made Coating Co., LLC in the amount of $54,192.60 to replace existing Tuff Coating on the splashpad.
• An Ordinance enacting a new Chapter 646 “prohibit Camping upon Public Property” of the Codified Ordinances of the City of Aurora.

There were 2 Ordinances proposed for 1st Reading:

• An Ordinance accepting the proposal of Salsbury Industries in the amount of $25,342.48 for the purchase of new lockers, locks and keys for the locker room upgrade project at the police department.

• An Ordinance for a 5 year contract extension with Star2Star Communications, LLC for the city’s phone service at the base rate of $2,497.31 per month.

The meeting adjourned at 7:06 pm

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City Council (CC):  Council President G. Horvat called the meeting to order at 7:09 pm with the Pledge to the Flag of the United States of America. All Council members were present  as noted in the COW report. There were 10 City Officials and Employees present and 2 people in the gallery.

August 12, 2024 Minutes were adopted with R. Barner and S. Wolf abstaining.

There was a 10 minute Executive Session to discuss the acquisition of Real Property.

Mayor’s Report: Items included: On September 11 at 6 pm at Sunny Lake Park there will be a ceremony to honor and remember the victims and their families of that tragic day in 2001 with the VFW, American Legion, Aurora Safety Forces and the Mayor. The Splash Pad will be open through Sunday September 15; Upcoming events include the 20th Annual Classic Car Show on September 15 at Sunny Lake, Rain Barrel workshop on September 17 , Last Shred Day September 21 and the Fall Festival at Sunny Lake on October 5 from noon to 4.  250 Harmon 8th Graders visited City Hall as part of their annual city walkabout; Sand Pebbles had a ribbon cutting ceremony at Aurora Commons; met with School Superintendent Mike Roberto and School Board President Pam Mehallis to discuss the upcoming school bond issue that will be on the November ballot; and began the 2025 Budget discussions with City Council representatives.

Law Director’s Report: Mr. DiPiero’s report was included in the packet.

Citizens Comments: None

Council Remarks: None

Ordinances on 3rd  Reading: 

• Ordinance 2023-104 for the Purchase of 40 acres of land and 53.63 acres of Geauga Lake with a Trail Lake Loop easement from ICP remains postponed.
  
• An Ordinance for a contract with Chagrin Valley Engineering was adopted.
  

Ordinance on 2nd Reading:

• An Ordinance authorizing the purchase of bulk road salt from Cargill, Inc went to 3rd Reading.
  

Ordinance on 1st Reading:

• An Ordinance from Planning Commission granting a conditional zoning certificate to MJ Property Group, LLC for a storage facility located at 300 Lena Drive went to 2nd Reading.
  

The 4 Ordinances proposed at COW for adoption on 1st Reading were adopted with Rules Suspended. See COW report for details.

Ordinances on 1st Reading:

• The 2 Ordinances proposed at the COW went to 2nd Reading. See COW report for details.
  

Miscellaneous: There were 2 Liquor Notices- El Granero Mexican Restaurant at 549 S Chillicothe Rd Unit 660 and for Thon Buri LLC DBA Sand Pebbles Restaurant at 340 Aurora Commons Circle. There was some discussion about changing the starting time for the COW/CC meetings. J. Kudley spoke against any change. P. French had no problem with moving the meeting time. Further discussion will be at the next Council meeting.

Citizens Comments: 1 Citizen asked about fowl hunting being allowed following the rules for deer hunting. D. DiPiero and G. Horvat said it would not happen and it will not go forward.

Council Members Remarks: R. Barner asked if there was any news on the Bertram Inn’s plans to renovate some of the hotel rooms into condos. D. Januska said nothing has been submitted for Planning’s consideration.

 The meeting adjourned about 7:30 pm.