NELSONVILLE, Ohio — Nelsonville City Council, operating under the city charter in city hall, met Monday to pass three ordinances, receive updates from the auditor, and talk more about the future of the Nelsonville Aquatic Center.
Nelsonville Aquatic Center
During the citizen comment section of the agenda, community members made several comments regarding the city pool and moving forward with the Nelsonville Aquatic Center.
Council President Cameron Peck said another reason they are looking at getting a second opinion is because of the brick buildings surrounding the aquatic center.
In a previous meeting, the council discussed installing new equipment at the Nelsonville Commons Playground, but the council resolved that decision to install needs to come after decisions about the pool.
“We don’t have any known concerns about the playground at this point in time,” council memberwoman Charlotte Beach said. “It’s just that an abundance of caution and wanting to advance our city forward that we want to make the best decisions we can as collective council.”
After further discussion with citizens about the pool, Peck said there will be a town hall at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, July 14, to talk about the pool. The council said they hope to have results back from the survey at that point to share with the public.
The Nelsonville Aquatic Center was closed in March of this year after the discovery of structural issues underneath the pool itself. These structural issues seemed to have been a result of cracks and leaks that were found in the base of the pool.
Peck said originally there was going to be an epoxy liner to put into the pool, but after the discovery of hollow ground underneath the concrete, an evaluation by a structural engineer would be required before installation.
After inspection, the engineering company informed the council that there are “giant voids” underneath the pool, Peck said.
City Manager Danette Miller suggested a second structural engineer come out to evaluate the site, so the public can have two expert opinions about the status of the pool. The council echoed this.
“I just know folks have questions about it and I don’t know any other honest way to answer them, besides with another equivalent expert coming in and giving the same opinion of the same situation,” Peck said. “In the hopes that once we have two reports that say the same thing, we’ll all be able to come together around that and make a decision around that.”
In addition to the structural engineer’s opinions, Peck said the council will also seek a geological survey of the ground at the Nelsonville Aquatic Center to compare it with the previous opinion given to them by the first structural engineer. That will allow the council and public to see if the ground can handle a pool and if it’s worth investing the money and time in a pool at the aquatic center.
The council is also moving forward with having a geotechnical technician to evaluate four different possible sites for a new city pool. As it stands, the current price for the evaluation is $10,000 total, or $2,500 per site.
Ordinances
The council adopted Ordinance 46-26 to continue a contract with Jonathan Robe, special counsel for the city, and approve additional funds necessary for the Robe’s required retainer. In addition to payments to Robe, the funds will also be used to pay outstanding invoices from Dinsmore and Shohl for legal services.
The ordinance allocated $36,789.35 from the unappropriated balance of the general fund to be split evenly between paying for Jonathan Robe and his required retainer and paying the invoices to Dinsmore and Shohl for legal services.
Next, the council adopted Ordinance 47-26 to amend several line items and gave authority to the city auditor to submit an amended budget to the Athens County Budget Commission. In addition to these changes, this ordinance will allow the city auditor to request needed documentation related to municipal spending..
The line items that received amendments included funds for the city manager, a grant writer and special projects, the city law director, and the finance department. The Athens County Independent has requested the amended ordinance in a public records request and will update the story with exact amounts once it has been fulfilled.
The council also passed emergency Ordinance 48-26 allowing the city manager to sign and enter a partnership agreement with the City of Athens and Athens County for the Community Housing Impact and Preservation Program, aka CHIP, by the Ohio Department of Development.
This partnership will remain active until all the CHIP funds are spent and the funding activities are completed. Nelsonville will be expected to provide all partners in the agreement quarterly or bi-annual reports that include fiscal expenditures or obligations, as well as outcome status.
The total CHIP grant amount awarded is over $1 million. The City of Athens received $350,000, Athens County received $400,000 and the City of Nelsonville received $300,000. These funds will be used to make repairs to and rehabilitate homes, including rental homes, and support municipalities’ administration of CHIP funding.
Administrative updates
Nelsonville City Auditor Brian Elkins shared updates about current work happening with the city’s finances.
Elkins said the reconciliation of the city’s accounts is still in progress, but two accounts have been completely reconciled. Reconciliation ensures that all of the city’s accounts are accurate and match the city’s finance records.
“Work continues on the concentration account — it’s the city’s largest and most complex account and it is directly tied to a multi-year backlog that I have inherited,” Elkins said in the meeting. “I previously stated that the finance software had not been fully utilized in prior years and much of reconciliation work was done outside of our system. My goal is to consolidate the reconciliation work in a single, central digital database fully inside of our existing finance software.”
Elkins said he requested and received a proposal from Julian and Grube, a certified public accounting firm, to accelerate the reconciliation work. This partnership is planned to be temporary and help the city take care of monthly reconciliations while also addressing staffing, structure and oversight in the city’s finances, Elkins said. This proposal is currently being evaluated by the city manager.
Elkins said for the city’s money market account to be in accordance with Ohio Revised Code, he has reached out to the state treasurer for enrollment with the State Treasury Asset Reserve of Ohio, aka STAR.
Elkins said he has been monitoring the city’s general fund activities and will continue to do so, in addition to providing a more detailed analysis as reconciliations are completed.
“Preliminary analysis of the year-to-date general fund activity indicates expenses are outpacing revenues for the current physical year,” Elkins said. He said that’s “consistent with the broader year-over-year decline in citywide revenue compared to 2025.”
Though the preliminary analysis indicates that the city is spending more than what it is making, Elkins said revenue did outpace expenses in May, and suggested the city may be heading in a favorable direction.
Following the auditor’s report, Nelsonville Grant Writer Michele Dunnington shared updates about current grants that have been secured and ones that are being pursued.
Dunnington has reached out to organizations such as Hocking Athens Perry Community Action Program, Buckeye Hills Regional Council and more to secure funding for the city.
There is now a grant application in progress to allow for the purchase of three new police cruisers for the city, and conversations started with the city’s utilities department to seek grant funding to secure new infrastructure, Dunnington said.
Before adjourning, the council entered into executive session for personal and legal matters.
Nelsonville’s charter council meets at 7 p.m. every other Monday of each month at Nelsonville City Hall, 211 Lake Hope Dr., Nelsonville.
