NELSONVILLE, Ohio — On Monday Jan. 12, the Nelsonville City Council operating under the city charter met for its first regular meeting of the year.
The meeting was not without drama. In the first few minutes the council heard from the mayor-elect Jonathan Flowers, who claimed to not yet have access to Nelsonville City Hall.
Flowers read from a prepared statement and “demanded” that Nelsonville Police Chief Devon Tolliver provide the keys to city hall. Tolliver was not present.
If Tolliver does not provide the keys, Flowers said that would constitute “willful and knowing misconduct for which I will pursue all available legal remedies, including actions against you individually and your office and your official capacity as permitted by law.”
Flowers requested a formal response to the letter.
The city’s newly appointed law director, Matthew Sommer, said the city was not going to respond.
Flowers’ attorney, Mathew Voltolini, replied, “This is not a legal question. You do not have the authorization to turn the keys over. Only the police chief does. Anything other than a ‘yes’ is a ‘no’,” he said to Sommer.
(Voltolini briefly served as counsel for the city in 2024, when it was also facing issues with competing claims for council seats.)
Sommer began to respond, but Voltolini interjected, “We’re done. You answered the question,” he said, and left the council chambers with Flowers.
Though Flowers was elected as the city’s mayor in the November 2025 general election, he has yet to exercise his authority in the position.
Flowers’ mayoral term is contingent upon Issue 23, the citizen-initiative overwhelmingly passed by voters in November 2024 to transition the city to a statutory-based form of government beginning Jan. 1, 2026.
In August 2025, Nelsonville City Council adopted Ordinance 54-25 to repeal Issue 23. At the time, Flowers was on the council and was the only council member to vote no.
The repeal led to an abundance of court cases, none of which determined the legality of Ordinance 54-25.
As a result, the November 2025 general election included Issue 23-based candidates on the ballot, despite Issue 23 having been repealed.
Now, the city currently has two councils operating under two different forms of government.
The council meeting at city hall –– the one Flowers addressed on Jan. 12 –– operates under city charter.
The other council group consists of individuals elected to city offices in November 2025 –– whose roles are also contingent on Issue 23 –– has instead met at Hocking College, and does not operate under city charter.
On Jan. 6, that group unanimously voted to repeal Ordinance 54-25. The repeal seemingly has had no effect in city hall.
Flowers could not be reached in time for publication.
Cameron Peck, president of the council operating under the city charter, told the Independent, he understands “what Mr. Flowers is trying to do.”
“I think that he believes that these theatrics are going to turn back time and unrepeal Issue 23 but they just simply will not. The remedy Mr. Flowers seeks will only take place in the courts,” Peck said.
Other business
During Monday’s meeting at city hall, the council appointed Danette Miller to the position of interim city manager. Tolliver had been serving as acting city manager since Fred Holmes resigned from the position in December 2025, Peck told the Independent.
While the city has filled vacancies for the city manager and law director positions, the treasurer and auditor positions remain open, along with the clerk of council position, as Mary Moffat resigned as clerk last week.
“The treasurer position will probably be a little easier to fill, but the auditor is just a difficult position [to fill],” Peck told the Independent
Peck said while the city is still looking to fill the vacancies, there is a plan “that will continue to allow us to get all of our bills paid and all of our paychecks out until such time as we can secure a permanent auditor.”
Peck said he did not want to “get into details” regarding the plan.
City updates
The charter council on Monday also heard city updates from the code office and the police department.
Nelsonville Code Officer Jason Kelley reported that from Dec. 8, 2025 to Jan. 12, the code office issued 20 notices of code violation, inspected one new rental, issued two notices of condemnation and one civil citation, took two complaint cases and issued 187 permits. The total fees collected during that time period totalled $14,610.
Kelley also reported that the city-owned property located at 126 Jefferson St. sold for just over $5,000.
In Tolliver’s absence, Nelsonville Police Department Sergeant Matt Greeno gave department updates.
Greeno reported that during December 2025, the department received 252 calls for service, conducted 80 traffic stops resulting in 16 traffic citations, issued one parking citation, investigated three traffic crashes, and made 25 arrests.
Service Director Jason Coen also spoke about maintenance at the Nelsonville Aquatic Center.
Coen said that the pool needs a new epoxy liner, citing leaks. While Coen said the liner would “hold,” the pool will eventually need rehabilitation or the city will need to replace it.
The council voted to forward discussion on the liner to its Parks and Recreation committee and discussion on funding for the project to the Finance committee. The charter council also took action to accept the Athens-Hocking Solid Waste District’s bid for recycling hauling and to allow Miller to complete the necessary contract.
In other business, the charter council passed three pieces of legislation. In addition to appointing Miller interim city manager, the council:
- Amended the Nelsonville zoning code to prohibit land usage for computer data centers.
- Authorized contract work for construction of sidewalks, curb ramps and crosswalks on Fayette Street, Watkins Street and Chestnut Street.
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, Jan. 26 at 7 p.m. Meetings are live streamed on YouTube. Find more at cityofnelsonville.com.
The other council group is meeting at The Lodge at Hocking College, 15770 SR 691, next Monday, Jan. 19.
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