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NELSONVILLE, Ohio — Two down, one to go: Nelsonville City Council filled two of three vacant seats at its Monday night meeting.
Residents Nancy Bumgardner and Glennda Tingle took oaths of office after few questions from council, which voted unanimously to appoint the two women.
They are currently the only women on the council.
“If citizens don’t get involved, things can’t get done, that need to get done,” Tingle said. “There was an opening for quite some time, so it was evident that someone needed to step up and say, ‘OK, I’m a citizen of Nelsonville, I like this place, I want it to do good.’ And so, I put my name in.”
Bumgardner said she was “born and raised” in Nelsonville, left at age 17 and came back two years ago to a city in “turmoil.”
“It did get settled down, but we’re back into turmoil again,” Bumgardner said. “I, myself, would like to help get this smoothed out, and let the citizens of Nelsonville appreciate what we have.”
Council member Nick Smith asked the new council members what they would like to get done, Tingle suggested “pulling in … absentee landlords,” as well as encouraging business to attract tourists.
Bumgardner replied, “I want to make sure there’s nothing that’s not open to people. To me, it’s been kinda secretive about things that have gone on. I don’t want that anymore. I want the businesses to survive and [flourish] … I think the [Hocking Valley Scenic Railway] brings in a lot of business we don’t even think about.”
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Council president Tony Dunfee then asked the two new members how they would deal with “grief” and criticism by way of social media.
Tingle said she would “address it from professionalism,” as well as encourage dialogue. Bumgardner said, “I am basically an old lady, and things don’t bother me as they do other people. I’m coming into this with an open mind, I’m here to listen and to learn and to help as much as I can.”
According to a 2020 Athens Messenger article, Bumgardner has served as Nelsonville’s mayor’s court clerk. According to a 2020 Athens News article, Tingle served as council clerk in 2018, until she was terminated from the position. Originally from Louisville, Kentucky, she also worked at the Bowen House community art center in Logan, according to a 2013 Logan Daily News report.
Three council members resigned from the body in the first two months of the year. As the Independent reported, Cory Taylor and Justin Booth both submitted resignations on Jan. 10. Doug Childs resigned Feb. 21.
According to previous Independent reports, letters of interest for the vacant council seat may be sent to Dunfee at tdunfee@cityofnelsonville.com or Clerk of Council Susan Harmony at councilclerk@cityofnelsonville.com.
In other business, the council passed an ordinance authorizing the city auditor to pay $7,500 to local insurance agent David Loge.
Council member Dan Sherman previously told the Independent that the $7,500 payment is essentially an out-of-court settlement between Loge and the city for an incident when, Sherman alleged, former city manager Scott Frank “placed all of the city’s picnic tables in [Loge’s] parking lot, blocking access to his business.”
Sherman on Monday asked if the city would seek restitution, expressing his belief that it should. “I don’t think the taxpayers should have to pay that,” he said.
Dunfee said if the Ohio Auditor of State found the instance to be a “negligible act,” that office could order restitution.
Council member Gregg Clement asked if an ordinance regarding restitution payments to the city, which had previously been shot down by the council, would be brought up again.
As the Independent reported, the ordinance had its first reading on Jan. 23. At the council’s Monday, Feb. 13 meeting, the ordinance failed 3-1; because the council has seven seats, at least four affirmative votes are required to pass legislation.
Sherman was the singular no vote, citing the ordinance’s lack of specific language. Dunfee said the ordinance would have to return on the next council agenda.
Nelsonville City Council meets every other Monday of each month. Its next regular meeting will be Monday, March 13 at 7 p.m. in Nelsonville City Council Chambers, 211 Lake Hope Drive. Meetings are also livestreamed on YouTube. Find more at cityofnelsonville.com.
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