By Sue Miklovic
The Village Council of North Baltimore held their first meeting of November last Tuesday on Election Day.
Prior to the council meeting, there was a special meeting held for the purpose of a requested zoning change, which is to be continued.
Mayor Goldner introduced NBHS Student Representative to Council, Mali Combs who was present for her first meeting and jumped in with both feet, voting and asking questions.
During Public Participation, village resident Bonnie Knaggs commented on the torn “Tree City USA” flag hanging on the fence at the east end of Reservoir 2 and asked about the water on the road in front of Reservoir 2. Council and the Mayor shared they are aware of both situations and working on solutions.
Councilman Aaron Patterson presented a letter of resignation from his brother Councilman Arthur Patterson. Mr. Patterson thanked the village for “Allowing me the opportunity to help better our community. It has been a privilege to be a part of this team and work alongside the mayor and all the council members in making sure the community has a strong foundation” Mayor Goldner accepted the letter “with regret”. Council has thirty days to name a replacement to fill the seat. Mr. Brillhart was asked to advertise the position for two weeks.
In other business:
~Finance officer Tony Swartz reported he and Councilwoman Leisa Zeigler attended the Auditor of State Exit Conference to review the draft copy of the village’s 2017/2018 audit. He reported nearly all the issues have already been corrected or will be corrected before year-end. He also shared a successful test of the online payment system has been completed and it is closer to going live. He is continuing to work on planned expenditures and revenue projections for the 2020 budget.
~Village Administrator Michael Brillhart gave an update of the status of the village grants in progress. He also shared he is in contact with the CSX Central maintenance office in Willard, Ohio concerning needed improvements at various crossing locations.
~The Village is holding a surplus inventory auction on Saturday, November 16th at 9:00 am at the Public Works garage. Payment is by CASH or CHECK ONLY!
~Appointed Legal Counsel Joel Kuhlman gave an update from his recent ongoing communications with the Wood County Commissioners concerning the Water Street bridge and the Broadway bridge. He was told the county Engineers office has a list of bridges needing fixed and that ODOT has a “Bridge project” for grants.
~The EMS requested hiring a new EMT-Noah Scapura, part-time, beginning November 5th. (The October EMS, Fire, and Police Reports are found in a separate article on this website)
~Under new business, a potential public safety concern was identified related to parking in the South Second Street-Reineke Dealership area. This will be discussed further at the Committee of the Whole meeting.
