ATHENS, Ohio — Athens City Council on Monday advanced the first reading of an ordinance to appropriate $932,000 to cover the final payment of the new fire station headquarters on Stimson Avenue.
Ordinance 0-63-25 approves the final payment to Pepper Construction for its work on the new fire station headquarters. The final payment includes $530,000 moved from the capital improvement fund to the safety services fund — of which $30,000 is new spending.
Another $350,000 moved into the safety service fund would come from two sources: $150,000 accrued in bond interest during project construction, and $200,000 from an insurance payment, following a November 2024 incident in an email-based cyber scam where the city lost its original final payment of $722,000 to Pepper Construction.
Two other funding sources are $27,000 from the general fund for fire department purposes and $25,000 from administrative funds used for supplies and services.
Council member Michael Wood, 3rd Ward, again expressed his concern that the final payment of $932,000 is $210,000 more than the original $722,000 payment — and that the increase occurred without the council’s approval of extra projects. The increase in the final payment raised the final appropriated amount for the fire station to $14.352 million.
Mayor Steve Patterson said there were “three significant change orders that came through” for extra projects: an expanded parking lot, a fitness court, and an art walk.
The extra spending occurred during a tumultuous time for the city, when the $722,000 had been pilfered, Patterson explained.
“It wasn’t intentional to have this over-expensing on the project, but it happened,” Patterson said. He added that the extra projects, appropriated as they were, involved an “oversight.”
The Independent reached out to Service-Safety Director Andy Stone for clarity on how the change orders were approved for the project, but did not receive a response in time for publication.
By ordinance, the city sets aside 1% of all large project budgets for art. Wood said the 1% for project art was included in the original project budget, and that the additional $210,000 spent on extra projects went above that 1%.
Council member Alan Swank, 4th Ward, said the art walk cost $63,000 more than anticipated.
“The one that got me, though, was the sport court,” Swank said. “The city’s contribution to that was $192,000.”
Swank explained that when he was part of the Athens Recreation Advisory Board, his impression was that the sports court would be paid from a grant. But only $35,000 came by grant, he noted.
Public hearing on Hooper Street re-zoning
During a public hearing Monday, opponents of a proposed affordable housing project at 111 Hooper St. voiced concerns over the zoning change required for the housing project from Hill Tide Partners to proceed. Opponents said rezoning the area as multifamily residential will exacerbate traffic problems, including a blind curve near the site, and issues with a lack of sidewalks.
The council held the required public hearing and heard from citizens, most of them residents of Nottingham Drive near Hooper Street, regarding Ordinance 0-56-25.
The ordinance, heard on second reading Monday night, would rezone just over 5 acres on Hooper Street from R-1 and R-2, single family and duplex housing, to R-3 multifamily residential housing.
The Athens Planning Commission approved a recommendation for rezoning at its meeting April 2. The rezoning is a required step before Hill Tide Partners of South Carolina can proceed on plans to develop an affordable housing project of up to 80 units.
First to speak and voice his objections was Nottingham Drive resident Aaron Romero, who said he and his wife, Jennifer, were left off of a mailing list related to the project. He said a blind corner curve, where Hooper intersects with Nottingham, is an important consideration. He described it as an “incredibly narrow, incredibly dangerous” road.
“In fact, last week my wife and I almost got hit broadside by (a motorist),” Romero said, adding that the council should visit the site before making its decision. Romero encouraged the council to bring chairs and a speed detection device to observe traffic.
Romero also said litter is left along Hooper Road all the way from Richland Avenue to Monticello Village Apartments, across the road from the proposed rezoning acreage. He added that a creek behind his property “is where everything drains into,” and could become contaminated. He also said that the Athens Shade Tree Commission and Sierra Club should examine how many trees would be razed from the project and the impact on wildlife.
Diana Marvel, another Nottingham Drive resident, said rezoning an area intended for single family homes in order to allow for a large housing project will “irrevocably” change the Hooper Street area. She said apartment complexes are needed, but should be built in areas already zoned to accommodate them.
“Let’s call it what it is – it’s a business,” Marvel said. “You would be putting in a huge, sprawling business right next to our homes.”
Jennifer Romero noted there are no sidewalks on the narrow road, and that there could be increased noise from the project.
Glen Hitchcock, an East State Street resident, said homeowners look at zoning before investing in a home. He said the rezoning to allow for a large housing project is not thoughtful toward homeowners.
“It’s pulling the rug out from under people who live there and just want a community, want a neighborhood,” Hitchcock said.
Rob Delach, a Morris Avenue resident, said community is important, but a lack of affordable housing in Athens is a major issue.
“There is no place else to build,” Delach said. “We need housing and we need all kinds of housing.”
Community engagement position
Also heard for first reading Monday was Ordinance 0-64-25, focusing on staffing levels in the mayor’s office. It removes a diversity, equity, inclusive and accessibility coordinator position currently held by Lacey Rogers and replaces it with a community engagement and accessibility coordinator.
Council member Beth Clodfelter, At-Large, said the community engagement coordinator position is not new; rather, the city is simply seeking to change Rogers’ title.
During the May 27 council committees meeting, City of Athens Human Resources Director Ron Lucas explained that the DEIA coordinator position has been transitioning over the past year-and-a-half from serving city employees to public engagement.
Council member Solveig Spjeldnes, 1st Ward, said she reached out to John Schmieding, a mediation expert at Athens Area Mediation Service, who “feels the position is very important in its revised configuration.” Schmieding wrote back “to express my strong belief that this position is crucial for the city at this time.”
Schmieding offered that Rogers has made advances with individuals and community organizations that benefit Athens as a whole — work that needs to continue. That is especially the case now with Ohio University cutting back on DEI programs, he wrote.
Swank noted that with failure of the city income tax increase ballot measure, coupled with an expiring Federal Emergency Management Agency grant, the city may lose three firefighters.
Swank said he’s “weighing what is more important to the town:” firefighters or the community engagement coordinator position. Swank said his contention is that council members themselves, as well as Mayor Patterson, are involved in community engagement and problem-solving.
Council member Jessica Thomas, At-Large, also said the three firefighter positions and the community engagement position “are not apples-to-apples comparisons,” because the firefighters’ positions were grant-funded.
Swank, however, said the community engagement position comes from the general fund, money that could be used for firefighters.
Auditor Kathy Hecht said the city may not be able to keep the three FEMA grant-funded firefighters.
Patterson said the hope, within the city administration and the fire department, has been that the three grant-funded firefighters would replace future retirees.
Two awards for The Government Channel
Council President Sam Crowl announced Monday that The Government Channel, led in its efforts by producer Jason Dudas, has received two significant awards in 2025: Communicator Award of Distinction and a Telly Award.
Both awards relate to the recent TGC production called “Athens City Hall – Stories to Tell.”
“Stories to Tell” relays the 150-year history of Athens City Hall, using sources such as Patterson and Deputy Service-Safety Director Andrew Chiki. The half-hour long documentary relays insights about Athens City Hall, such as prior uses that included an opera house and a barber shop.
The city police and fire departments were also housed in the building in its past. Chiki noted that around 1975, the building’s 100-year anniversary, there was discussion in Athens about razing city hall and creating something more modern. Fortunately, those efforts did not prevail in tearing down such an important part of Athens history, he said.
“It’s a big deal,” Patterson said of TGC winning awards. “It’s like winning an Academy Award … for television production and television, period.”
Other business
In other matters Monday, Patterson announced that Sustainable Ohio Public Energy Council rates for Athens County as of June 1 will be less expensive, at $0.09756 per kilowatt hour, compared to the AEP Ohio standard service offer of $0.0997 per kilowatt hour.
SOPEC is a council of governments that promotes green energy initiatives through an electric aggregation program. Those who are not signed up with SOPEC can do so online.
Spjeldnes also announced that Hocking Athens Perry Community Action has received an additional $2 million in grant funding for the purpose of transitioning the former Sunset Motel on Columbus Road into an emergency shelter.
HAPCAP had already received an initial $2 million to turn the motel into a homeless shelter offering overnight stays. The new total of funding, having doubled, should enable the Athens Shelter to become a successful addition for those in need of emergency housing assistance, including an improved parking area.
Athens City Council’s next meeting will be at 7 p.m. Monday, June 9 in Athens City Hall, Council Chambers, third floor, 8 E. Washington St. Meetings are also streamed online. Regular sessions are on the first and third Mondays of the month; committee meetings are on the second and fourth Mondays.
Dani Kington contributed to this reporting.
