NELSONVILLE, Ohio – Nelsonville City Council continued to struggle with its “December problem” — the gap between the end of current council members’ terms and the start of new members’ terms — at its regular meeting Tuesday, May 27.
The positions of city auditor and treasurer also will be empty for that month.
The city’s ad-hoc advisory commission, which was created to implement the voter-mandated transition to a statutory form of government, recommended that the council create a contingency plan if no one runs for the one-month council terms in December.
There is no established process by which anyone could run for a one-month seat, although the ad-hoc commission recommended the city place one-month positions on the ballot.
Council member Nancy Sonick, the only current council member who will serve until Dec. 31, asked if individuals elected to the statutory council seats in the November election could be appointed to fill the December seats.
“If, in December, a member of this council was still here, could that person appoint — ahead of time — the people who have been voted in for the statutory government?” Sonick asked.
Council member Nic Joseph Saul noted that the petition to file as a candidate for the council does not include a section limited to a one-month term, meaning there is no clear path for anyone to run for one-month seats as recommended by the ad-hoc committee.
According to the Ohio Revised Code Section 3513.261, a candidate must declare if they are running for a full term or an unexpired term.
The city will also be short an auditor and a treasurer. City Auditor Taylor Sappington, who is stepping away from his role in September to become the Athens County Treasurer, said the city does not have any strategic planning.
After Sappington delivered the auditor report for April, council member Jonathan Flowers questioned the amount of money in the water and sewer fund. In April, there was over $1.6 million in the water fund and over $1.1 million in the sewer fund.
“The most problematic question I get is, ‘Can we afford that?’” Sappington said. “The question actually should be, ‘Should we?’”
Reid Courtney, chair of the ad-hoc advisory commission, updated the council about the committee’s meeting with city employees to address their concerns about the “December problem.” At the commission’s Wednesday, May 21 meeting, Courtney said most concerns were related to contracts for employees and vendors.
At Tuesday’s meeting, City Law Director Jonathan Robe said the city has an obligation to honor its contractual agreements, even if other parties decide to back out as the government transitions from its city charter to a statutory form of government.
“The charter actually has language affirming the validity of pre-charter debts,” Robe said.
If the new council does not honor its debts, contractors could raise their rates and the city’s insurance carrier could exercise its “reservation of rights,” which allows insurers to investigate claims and deny coverage, Robe continued.
“If this city becomes uninsurable because it can’t honor its contracts, you might as well turn off the lights,” he said.
Robe said it’s possible for the city to hire an outside firm to fulfill an auditor’s duties if the role is not filled.
Council President Gregg Clement, who was also at the commission’s meeting, said the city’s current budget has no funds to hire external auditors.
“I think we’re facing a lot of issues in the transition that obviously are going to cost money in the current budget,” Clement said. “I don’t know where those funds could be found.”
Courtney recommended the council pass a three-month continuing budget to ease the governmental transition, using the 2025 budget and adding a 4% appropriation increase to account for previous trends in the city budget.
In steps to manage its current government, the council ratified the city manager contract for Fred Holmes, who is serving as city manager until the end of the year. Council member Jonathan Flowers was the lone no vote against the resolution, stating that 5 weeks of vacation for a sevem-month contract is “disturbing.”
“He’s a private citizen with plans who’s coming in to help us,” council member Cameron Peck said. “So we accepted him as he was and didn’t ask him to change for us.”
Holmes’ annual salary of $59,000 is prorated, which means he will only earn a portion of the promised salary because he is not serving an entire fiscal year. The five weeks of vacation time are in exchange for the salary Holmes won’t receive.
Former City Manager and Police Chief Devon Tolliver, who negotiated the contract for the city, said the vacation time was in exchange for the cut in the total annual salary. Holmes also waived his commitment to the American Red Cross for the rest of the year.
The council also passed a resolution authorizing the city to join the Athens County Economic Development Council, with Flowers casting the lone vote against.
In other business at Tuesday’s meeting, the council:
- Passed an ordinance partially vacating an alley of Flossie Whitmore’s Sylvania addition.
- Passed an emergency ordinance authorizing the city to renew the Ohio small groups health insurance and to approve a 5% premium rate increase for the city’s health insurance.
- Passed a resolution to place a 3-mill replacement levy on the Nov. 4 general election ballot for general construction, reconstruction, resurfacing, and repair of streets, roads and bridges.
- Passed an ordinance to hire Nelsonville aquatic center staff, including up to three head lifeguards starting at $15 per hour, 20 part-time lifeguards starting at $14 an hour and 12 seasonal staff members starting at $14 an hour.
Nelsonville City Council meets every other Monday of each month, at Nelsonville City Council Chambers, 211 Lake Hope Drive. Its next regular meeting will be Monday, June 9, 2025, at 7 p.m. Meetings are live streamed on YouTube. Find more at cityofnelsonville.com.
