ATHENS, Ohio — Two members of Athens City Council sparred Monday night over a proposed ordinance to pay the city of Athens’ membership in the Outdoor Recreation Council of Appalachia.
Council heard second reading of the ordinance, which would authorize paying 2024 dues of $24,673 to the council of governments that is developing the Baileys Trail System. The city’s membership in ORCA has been in doubt for most of the year — originally when the Athens County Commissioners declined to pay their dues, and again when the city halted spending because its reserves had fallen below 7.5% of annual operating expenses as required by statute.
The new ordinance, to pay dues at a rate lowered by ORCA, makes paying dues contingent on the city’s reserve being at least 9% of annual expenses, just as an ordinance earlier this year to pay the higher amount did. On Monday night, councilor Jessica Thomas, At-Large, proposed amending the ordinance to set the threshold at 8%.
Thomas said she asked city Auditor Kathy Hecht about lowering the threshold and that Hecht “felt that would be very doable for this year and next.”
Hecht previously told the Independent that, as of Oct. 21, the city’s general fund balance was at 8%. Hecht told council members at an Oct. 28 committee meeting that she would like to see the city pay its ORCA dues this year, regardless.
Council member Alan Swank, 4th Ward, objected to Thomas’s proposed amendment.
“I’d like to know the auditor’s reasoning for that, because that’s a little contrary to my correspondence with her,” Swank said.
“Mostly because we’ve committed to paying it,” Thomas said. She noted that the reserve isn’t at 9% now and isn’t likely to be by March 2025 when the next membership payment is due.
“It’s a reasonable amount in her opinion and she said she was fine with moving that to 8%,” Thomas said.
“That’s not what I got,” Swank replied.
“I don’t know what to tell you about that,” Thomas said.
“My question is — 9% we’ve held steadfast to and then all of a sudden we don’t need 9% anymore,” Swank said. “And we’re about to next week talk about an income tax.”
Swank verified that amending the ordinance would send it back to first reading, “so we’ll have an opportunity to have the auditor present to explain this.”
When asked about the city’s general fund balance, Treasurer Josh Thomas said, “We’re at 8% right now.”
“The auditor sent me with a message to say that she fully supports this amendment and would like to see it go forward,” the treasurer said.
Mayor Steve Patterson said, “If the city auditor is comfortable with this… the city auditor is the one who manages the budget and helping to manage the auditing process.”
A vote on the amendment to lower the reserve threshold requirement to 8% passed 6-1, with Swank casting the lone “no” vote. The amended ordinance will have a first reading at the council’s next meeting.
Sewer rate hike approved
In other business, council approved a 3% increase in sewer rates that will go into effect on January 2025 bills. Rates will increase to $6.18 per month for residences, $6.99 for commercial businesses and $7.71 for industrial uses, with a base rate for residential water starting at $32.18 for up to 15,000 gallons. Hecht said previously that a 3% hike is in line with past increases. The ordinance passed without comments.
Grant administration contract: Council heard first reading of an ordinance authorizing a 1-year contract with Sunday Creek Horizons for project management at a cost of $10,000 monthly for a total of $120,000. The contract would put Sunday Creek in charge of
- Management of the Armory renovation;
- Management and compliance for current and future CDBG projects in collaboration with HAPCAP;
- Management, compliance and reporting for Safe Streets & Roads grants through the U.S. Department of Transportation; and
- Tracking and reporting use of ARPA funds.
In addition, Sunday Creek would lead development of an Americans with Disabilities Act Transition Plan and work with the city on community and economic development, including redevelopment of the Columbus Road fire station, use of the city’s fiber assets, construction of the ALCO boat ramp; and establishing a physical hub for the Farmer’s Market.
The contract also authorizes Sunday Creek to advocate on the city’s behalf with state and federal agencies “to ensure Athens’ needs are prioritized and that essential resources are allocated to support its growth and future development.”
Rezoning on Grand Park Boulevard: The council removed ordinance 0-55-24 from the table and passed it on third reading. The ordinance rezones five lots between Grand Park Boulevard and Eden Place from R-2, Residential, to R-3, Residential, Multi-Family Zone. The measure would allow the Don Wood auto dealership to build a larger lot. It was tabled in June, Swank said at the meeting, because some of the lighting at the dealership was out of compliance with city code. The offending lights were recently disconnected, Swank said.
Ordinances passed under an emergency
- 0-114-24: Adjusts staffing levels in the Mayor’s Office to allow departing grants administrator Patricia Witmer to train her replacement. That individual will fill a newly created full-time position of executive assistant, at pay grade 3, equivalent to $26.14 hourly. A three-quarter time receptionist position at the lowest level, pay grade 1, will be eliminated. Passed on second reading as an emergency measure.
- 0-116-24: Raises for nonunion personnel, including a $0.75/hour cost of living increase for full-time and permanent part-time non-union employees, and a one-time lump sum payment to employees whose general hourly pay rate exceeds the maximum pay rate in their pay grade.
- 0-117-24: A fringe benefits package for nonunion personnel.
Ordinances passed on third reading
- 0-108-24: Authorizes design and construction of a Public Safety Training Facility using $2.5 million in funding from the state budget. The center will be used to train first responders including firefighters, EMTs, and police personnel.
- 0-105-24: Authorizes the Service-Safety Director to register with the General Services Administration, a cooperative purchasing program.
- 0-104-24: Authorizes the Service-Safety director to enter into a contract for the next phase of construction in Project 330, the Bikeway Force Main. The $1.8 million cost will come from Sewer Plant Fund 750.
- 0-103-24: Amends the 2024 Appropriations Ordinance by designating $25,000 to the Cable Access Fund to replace The Government Channel’s Video Switcher System; $45,000 to the Sewer Fund to cover electric costs for AEP and Oak Tree Equity (Solar), and increasing appropriations by the same amounts.
Ordinances heard on second reading
- 0-115-24: 2025 appropriations, with the General Fund at $19.95 million out of a total budget of $54 million.
- 0-118-24: Authorizes the mayor to enter into or extend an agreement with Athens County Commissioners for services of the Public Defenders Office and expending up to $120,000 for those services from General Fund 101-106.
- 0-119-24: Amends City Code Title 1, Chapter 1.03, related to establishing fees for accessory structures, accessory energy systems, and principal renewable energy systems. As one example, a permit fee of $100 is to be established for accessory structures and accessory energy systems plus $1.50 per $1,000 of improvement.
Ordinances heard on first reading
- 0-120-24: Authorizes the mayor to continue the city’s contract with the Athens County Economic Development Council at a cost of $60,000 annually through 2027. Passed on first reading under an emergency.
- 0-121-24: Authorizes 2025 staffing levels.
- 0-122-24: Authorizes the Service-Safety Director to contract with the Employee Benefit Service Center to serve as third-party administrator of the city’s health insurance program in 2025.
- 0-123-24: Authorizes the Service-Safety Director to enter into a 1-year contract with Sirius America to cover the city’s stop-loss/excess loss medical insurance effective Jan. 1, 2025.
- 0-125-24: Declares two city-owned Ford E-450 trucks as surplus to be sold for scrap.
- 0-126-24: Amends city code Title 5, Public Utilities, Chapter 5.03, Water Regulations, Section 5.0303, to define instances in which homeowners would be charged for water loss when a line breaks in their home and up to 3 feet from a home. Patterson encouraged residents to sign up for the Residential Water Loss Protection Program at a cost of $36 per year.
- 0-127-24: Authorizes the Service-Safety director to enter into a contract to lease or monetize the city’s Solar Renewable Energy Credits. The city has multiple small solar arrays in the area around the Community Center and city pool. One SREC is equal to one megawatt hour of electricity produced, with the city having enough solar energy production to lease SRECs into a neighboring state such as Pennsylvania, and receive up to $92,000 yearly from doing so.
