WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2010

REGULAR MEETING

7:30 P.M.

1. ROLL CALL. Mrs. Sanders called the meeting to order at 7:30 P.M., with roll call as follows: Mrs. Hammond, Mr. Barletta, Mr. Fix, Mr. Sauer, and Mrs. Sanders were present. Mr. Blair and Mr. Wisniewski were absent due to employment commitments. Others present were Mayor O’Brien, Bill Vance, Lynda Yartin, Chris Schornack, Linda Fersch, Ed Drobina, Greg Bachman, Stephanie Spencer, Susan Crotty, Chet Hopper, Helen Mayle, Woody Winfree, Mark Mathews, Sandy Melillo, and others.

2. A. APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF October 6, 2010, Budget Work Session. Mr. Fix moved to approve; Mrs. Hammond seconded the motion. Roll call was taken with Mrs. Hammond, Mr. Fix, Mr. Barletta, Mr. Sauer, and Mrs. Sanders voting “Yea.” Motion passed, 5-0.

B. APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF October 6, 2010, Regular Meeting. Mr. Fix moved to approve; Mrs. Hammond seconded the motion. Roll call was taken with Mr. Sauer, Mr. Fix, Mrs. Sanders, Mrs. Hammond, and Mr. Barletta voting “Yea.” Motion passed, 5-0.

C. APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF October 13, 2010, Budget Work Session. Mrs. Hammond moved to approve; Mr. Fix seconded the motion. Roll call was taken with Mrs. Sanders, Mr. Sauer, Mrs. Hammond, Mr. Fix, and Mr. Barletta voting “Yea.” Motion passed, 5-0.

3. DONATION REQUEST PRESENTATIONS:

A. Lancaster Public Transit. Mayor O’Brien stated Ms Woody had another commitment tonight at another budget meeting. He stated Ms Woody is working on a plan that will establish a limited scope area of service for the $2.00 ride. He stated it will not be county-wide, but based on the available funding and the commitments they have received so far.

B. Olde Downtown Pickerington Village Business Association. Mr. Vance stated the OPVBA had provided a summary of their activities for the Committee’s review and also Ms Crotty has requested $4,500 to be invested in downtown revitalization activities involving events geared to getting additional traffic into that area and to enhance any investments made in that area throughout the fiscal year. Mr. Vance stated Ms Melillo, the President of the OPVBA is present to answer any questions anyone might have. Ms Crotty stated she would add that with Mr. Henderson being assigned as our liaison for the Olde Pickerington Village and for our revitalization efforts we had talked about utilizing the funds reflected in her budget for advertising, printing, and to support the promotion of the events downtown. She stated this is consistent with what Ms Melillo has requested and that is outlined in the information she had provided to the Committee. Ms Melillo stated she would be happy to answer any questions anyone might have. Mr. Fix clarified that the sources of income for the OPVBA outside of the City consisted of the $75 annual dues paid by each business. Mrs. Hammond clarified there are about 30 businesses that are members of the Association. Mr. Fix stated these events are designed to attract people into the downtown area and do business there as a result of that exposure. Mrs. Hammond stated while she is in support of the old village, it appeared that it appears that there is a Shoppe Hop virtually every month and that meant there were shops you go in to shop and she thought there were only three retail shops in that area. Mrs. Hammond stated she was not sure that these events would have the effect we would want. Ms Melillo stated they are trying to redesign their organization to meet the needs of the downtown area as a result of a lot of the retail businesses closing. She stated they are not actually called Shoppe Hops any more, but they do have events planned for just about every month. Mr. Fix inquired if Ms Melillo had any idea of how many people attended these various functions, and Ms Melillo stated it varied, and it depended on how established the event was. She stated the Cruise In, the Haunted Village, and the Christmas Holiday event were well established and had a large turn out. Mr. Fix stated he felt funding this would be more of a quality of life for our residents than a return on investment for the businesses. Ms Melillo stated the businesses benefit any time there is an event in the downtown area, and one of their goals is to get people to come down and visit the village. Mr. Vance stated he felt the $4,000 investment would benefit the city in many areas and it would establish credibility when we go to the Main Street and the Heritage Ohio organizations. Mr. Fix stated as he understood it then, 2011 would be step one in the city’s working very closely with the OPVBA to establish a vision of the future as opposed to doing what we have always done. Mr. Vance stated he felt we were beginning to get more organized and the City is trying to establish an active partnership that we can build upon. Ms Melillo stated the Historical Society have partnered with them, the Parks and Recreation Department have partnered with them, and they have been working with the Chamber of Commerce. She stated it is very exciting to see all of those entities getting together and working together for a common goal. Mr. Fix stated he felt there were valid reasons to support this.

C. Pickerington Area Chamber of Commerce. Mr. Winfree stated a proposal had been provided to the Committee for their information. He stated he would like to thank the City for their past support and the platinum membership. Mr. Winfree stated the City was also able to get the benefit from being a member of the Chamber by getting a discount on their health insurance and they are also working with the City to get a savings on Workers Compensation. Mr. Winfree stated in May they will have their fourth annual development summit and perhaps they can work with Ms Crotty to make sure everyone is invited to the same events. Mr. Winfree stated they are also planning the Lenders Summer and the Business Expo as well as their annual banquet. Mr. Winfree stated he would answer any questions anyone might have. Mr. Sauer stated the City is looking into developing a database with certain information regarding businesses and what the community has to offer in terms of demographics, and he wondered if the Chamber had that kind of information or access to that kind of information. Mr. Winfree stated they use Job and Family Services in Lancaster to give them part of that data, and there are a couple of web sites that have some of the data and the realtors in town have some of it. Mr. Sauer stated it would be nice instead of creating a duplicate database, or a duplication of effort, it would be nice if both the Chamber and the City’s development department were heading in the same direction using the same data. Mr. Winfree stated MORPC also has their database and the 33 Alliance also did theirs two years ago. Mr. Fix stated the Chamber does function in a lot of ways to help bring new businesses to the community, but really more to promoting existing businesses and doing what they can to help make those businesses successful. Mr. Fix stated a big part of our focus is business retention and he would ask for a commitment from the Chamber to do whatever we can jointly to work on business retention. Mr. Winfree stated absolutely they would do that. Mr. Vance stated upon his arrival in Pickerington sign regulations were a controversial topic and the Chamber was very receptive to serving as a clearing house to get the feedback from our existing businesses, and he felt that is an example of how the current administration got off to a great start with the Chamber and he would predict future efforts would be very positive and successful as well. Mr. Vance stated he is an advocate of the City funding the Chamber to work in coordination with our Economic Development Department as well as the City Manager.

D. Violet Festival. Mr. Matthews stated he was present representing the Violet Festival and they are looking for help to continue an event that will be coming up on its fourteenth year. Mr. Matthews stated he had spoken with Mr. Vance and they had spoken about working out an in-kind contribution rather than getting funds and turning around and giving it back to the City. Mr. Vance stated it made sense for the City Manager to make that proposal because the City obviously has public safety responsibilities in supporting an event of that size. He stated as the event approaches he could negotiate as to what level of public safety services would be provided and make sure that Council stays in communication with the Manager and fully understands those negotiations as we approach the festival date. Mr. Vance stated in-kind donations as opposed to financial donations in relation to public safety is the proposal on the table. Mayor O’Brien stated then we would have a public safety plan prior to going into the festival and Mr. Vance stated that was correct. Mr. Vance stated Chief Taylor would be involved and they would identify specifics, come up with a plan and make sure the plan would go to the Finance Committee well before the festival so if additional debate were necessary it could take place. Mr. Fix clarified that Mr. Matthews was present asking for no cash, but in-kind contributions by way of manpower. Mr. Matthews stated that was correct. Mr. Fix asked if in general the Violet Festival was in the black or in the red this past year, and if so, how much. Mr. Matthews stated they were in the black approximately $30,000.

4. FINANCE DEPARTMENT.

A. Finance Director’s Report. Mr. Schornack stated he had provided a written report and he would be happy to take any questions. Mr. Schornack stated he would request under Other Business discussion on the proposed CIP for 2011-2015.

B. Review and request for motion to approve draft ordinance amending the 2010 appropriation, Ordinance 2009-91. Mr. Schornack stated he had one appropriation request and that was for the Equity TIF because not enough was appropriated to pay Equity’s portion. He stated the money was received so it was just an in and out so he needed to appropriate the $68,142.98. Mr. Fix moved to approve and forward to Council; Mrs. Sanders seconded the motion. Roll call was taken with Mrs. Hammond, Mr. Fix, Mr. Barletta, Mrs. Sanders, and Mr. Sauer voting “Yea.” Motion passed, 5-0.

C. Review and request for motion to approve draft ordinance amending the Finance Director’s contract. Mrs. Sanders stated this is a matter of authorizing the sell back of vacation time as our Finance Director has been extremely busy and has been unable to use his vacation time. Mr. Schornack stated he will not be requesting any additional appropriations for this. Mr. Fix clarified the amount was approximately 40 hours. Mr. Fix moved to approve and forward to Council; Mrs. Sanders seconded the motion. Roll call was taken with Mrs. Hammond, Mr. Sauer, Mr. Barletta, Mr. Fix, and Mrs. Sanders voting “Yea.” Motion passed, 5-0.

D. Review and request for motion to approve draft ordinances for eight note renewals and one note consolidation ordinance. Mr. Schornack stated this will coincide with the debt schedule as it has been budgeted today. Mr. Fix moved to approve and forward to council; Mr. Sauer seconded the motion. Roll call was taken with Mr. Barletta, Mr. Fix, Mrs. Sanders, Mrs. Hammond, and Mr. Sauer voting “Yea.” Motion passed, 5-0.

Mr. Schornack stated he also had a draft ordinance for the refunding of the City’s sanitary sewer system improvement bonds and he had provided a packet of information on this issue. Mr. Schornack stated this shows the possibility of refunding our current notes at an interest rate of 4.85 percent and to borrow the money at a lower interest rate, therefore, saving roughly $216,000. Mr. Schornack stated this is the first year we are able to do this, and with the market the way it is now, it is his recommendation to move forward with this. He stated further we will do this as a component of our note sale and see how the bids come in. Mr. Fix moved to approve and forward to council; Mr. Sauer seconded the motion. Roll call was taken with Mrs. Hammond, Mr. Barletta, Mr. Fix, Mr. Sauer, and Mrs. Sanders voting “Yea.” Motion passed, 5-0.

5. PERSONNEL DEPARTMENT.

A. Personnel Director’s Report. Mrs. Fersch stated she had provided a written report to the Committee and she would answer any questions. Mrs. Fersch stated she and Mr. Vance had interviewed ten applicants for the Personnel Director’s position and they have selected Lynn Miller. Mrs. Fersch stated Ms Miller is currently with the City of Westerville and is very qualified for this position. Mrs. Fersch stated she will be presenting the Pay Plan and Authorized Strength for 2011 next week.

6. CHAIRMAN: Mrs. Sanders stated she had nothing to bring forward but she would like to thank everyone for making the budget process go so smoothly and it will be finished up next week.

7. OTHER BUSINESS:

A. Review and discussion regarding Ordinance 2010-19, an ordinance approving the rezoning and final development plan for the approximate 16.06 acre Ebright/Homestead parcels. Mr. Vance stated he met with the developer and their attorney and they were agreeable to the position supported by staff as far as Phase I. He stated we are awaiting correspondence to confirm that understanding and we will then work with them to move their application forward as we can. Mr. Vance stated the specifics will be brought back to this Committee before the issue is returned to Council. Mrs. Sanders stated she would ask this be continued on the agenda.

B. Review and request for motion to approve the Impact Fee Waiver request by the Pickerington Local School District. Mr. Schornack stated that in the past we have typically waived the impact fees for the school district. Mayor O’Brien clarified the amount being requested by this waiver is $2,837.16. Mr. Fix moved to approve the Impact Fee Waiver request for the Pickerington Local School District in the amount of $2,837.16; Mr. Sauer seconded the motion. Roll call was taken with Mrs. Hammond voting “Nay,” and Mr. Fix, Mr. Barletta, Mr. Sauer, and Mrs. Sanders voting “Yea.” Motion passed, 4-1.

C. Review and request for motion to approve request to waive building permit costs by Pickerington Senior Center. Mrs. Sanders stated this request is to waive the fees in the amount of $775.68, and is for constructing a canopy over the back handicap entrance for safety reasons. Mr. Schornack stated he is not aware of waiving these permit fees in the past. Mrs. Hammond stated the request states that the City uses their facility on Monday nights and she would like to know if we pay a fee for that and Mr. Schornack stated he did not believe we paid a fee. Mr. Hopper stated he thought it should be considered that there are some review fees that we pay our contracted plan reviewer. Mr. Fix moved to require the Senior Center to only pay the City’s hard costs when going through the permitting process for this addition; Mrs. Sanders seconded the motion. Mayor O’Brien inquired if inspections would be required and Mr. Hopper stated there were and he would be doing most of those, and the cost of inspections is included in the permit fees. Roll call was taken with Mr. Sauer, Mr. Fix, Mrs. Sanders, Mrs. Hammond, and Mr. Barletta voting “Yea.” Motion passed, 5-0. Mr. Vance stated for clarification the expectation is that the Senior Center pay for the plan review fees and Mr. Fix stated they would pay for whatever the City’s out of pocket costs are.

D. Review and discussion regarding proposed Organizational Chart. Mrs. Yartin stated she had provided the Committee with a revised Organizational Chart today based on the results of the election yesterday. She stated the only revision was to move the City Clerk position under Council instead of the City Manager. Mrs. Yartin stated the Organizational Chart will be attached to the Pay Plan when it is sent forward.

E. Review and request for motion to approve draft ordinance amending Section 1272.06 of the Pickerington Codified Ordinances relating to the authority to appoint the Planning and Zoning Director. Mr. Fix stated this basically corrects an inconsistency in the Code and places the appointment authority with the City Manager. Mr. Sauer stated in the Organizational Chart we do not have a Planning and Zoning Director it is included with the Economic Development Director. He stated he was concerned about the wording that the City Manager “shall” appoint and questioned if that required the City Manager to appoint that individual. Mrs. Hammond stated she would also question if the wording was “shall” did that mean it was mandatory, or if it said “may” it would be at the Manager’s discretion. Mr. Fix moved to forward the draft ordinance to Council with the change of the word “shall” to “may” as discussed; Mr. Sauer seconded the motion. Roll call was taken with Mrs. Sanders, Mr. Sauer, Mrs. Hammond, Mr. Fix, and Mr. Barletta voting “Yea.” Motion passed, 5-0.

F. Review and request for motion to approve draft ordinance authorizing amendment of the employment agreement with City Manager William Vance. Mr. Sauer stated he had requested this item on the agenda. He stated after the last conversation he had some reservations with the way this was left and he felt the best investment an employer can make is in your people. He stated he wanted to make sure the people we employ here are treated correctly and give every indication that we are providing a solid future for our community as well as the people working for our community. Mr. Sauer continued that he did not have a problem with going forward with this and making the payment as the City Manager had seen from his point of view in terms of interpretation. He stated he felt this was a legal document that was subject to interpretation a couple of different ways and he wanted to make sure we were doing right by the individual we hired, and he felt this was the right thing to do. Mrs. Sanders stated she agreed with Mr. Sauer on this issue and she would feel better if we would pay Mr. Vance according to what he thought he negotiated. Mr. Fix clarified then one percent of the annual salary per month would go to the deferred compensation account. Mr. Vance stated for the record at the last discussion, a proposal was made that was not found acceptable by all parties, and at that point in time the Manager was just fine with the contract being amended to not reflect any of this. Mr. Sauer stated he wanted it clear that this was here solely at his request. Mr. Fix stated he had stated in the past that he supported this. Mr. Sauer moved to approve the draft ordinance authorizing the amendment to the employment agreement with the City Manager and forward to Council; Mr. Fix seconded the motion. Roll call was taken with Mrs. Hammond, Mr. Fix, Mr. Barletta, Mrs. Sanders, and Mr. Sauer voting “Yea.” Motion passed, 5-0.

Mr. Schornack stated he would not need an appropriation for this year, but he would need to adjust next year’s budget to reflect this.

Mr. Schornack stated he would like to discuss the proposed CIP for 2011-2015 that everyone had received. Mr. Bachman reviewed the proposed CIP and stated he would answer any questions anyone might have on the proposed projects. Mr. Fix clarified that wastewater, water, and stormwater projects would come out of those funds, and streets, parks, and land would be more general funds and impact fee related. Mr. Vance stated he felt we have the opportunity to be very aggressive and very responsible with utility fund investments and improvements in the next few years, and he would recommend that Council be prepared to hear recommendations from staff to move forward to continue to enhance the foundation that is in place. Mr. Bachman stated the only two roadway projects he has projected for the next few years would be the pavement resurfacing each year, which can obviously be changed around, and the other is the S.R. 256 safety project. Mr. Schornack stated this will be brought forward with the budget and was brought forth this evening to allow Council to review it and provide any comments they may have.

Mrs. Hammond stated during the Budget Work Session there was discussion regarding the projects that needed to be done at the Carnegie Library. She stated it was suggested to her that possibly different businesses or individuals might be willing to contribute to the upkeep of that building. She stated she was just suggesting this as something we may want to consider. Mrs. Sanders asked how we might go about this, and Mrs. Hammond stated as a member of the Chamber perhaps an e-mail blast and Mr. Fix stated he felt it would be a great project for the Parks and Recreation Board to discuss. Mrs. Hammond stated she felt this is something to consider since it is a historical building and has such a history. Mr. Sauer stated he concurred as this building is a community treasure.

8. MOTIONS:

A. Motion for Executive Session under Section 121.22(G)(1)b, Matters involving an employee’s or public official’s employment, Section 121.22(G)(2), Purchase or sale of public property, Section 121.22(G)(3), Conference with law director regarding pending or imminent court action, and Section 121.22(G)(4), Matters involving bargaining sessions with public employees. Mrs. Sanders stated an Executive Session is not necessary this evening.

9. ADJOURNMENT. There being nothing further, Mrs. Sanders moved to adjourn; Mr. Fix seconded the motion. Mrs. Hammond, Mr. Sauer, Mr. Barletta, Mr. Fix, and Mrs. Sanders voted "Aye." Motion carried, 5-0. The Finance Committee adjourned at 8:40 P.M., November 3, 2010.

RESPECTFULLY SUBMITTED:

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Lynda D. Yartin, Municipal Clerk