PUBLIC HEARING MONDAY, MAY 14, 2018 7:25 P.M. Council President Craig Witherspoon opened the Public Hearing for Ordinance No. 26-18 ORDINANCE NO. 26-18 AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND SECTION 1292.09(a) OF THE CODIFIED ORDINANCES OF THE CITY OF AVON TO MODIFY THE MINIMUM NUMBER OF OFF STREET WAITING SPACES FOR DRIVE THRU FACILITIES There being no comments, the Public Hearing for Ordinance No. 26-18 was closed at 7:27p.m. MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF AVON, OHIO, HELD MONDAY, MAY 14, 2018 IN THE COUNCIL CHAMBERS OF THE MUNICIPAL BUILDING AT 7:30 P.M. The Chairman, Council President Craig Witherspoon, called the meeting to order and led the Pledge of Allegiance. PRESENT Council Members: 1 st Ward Bob Butkowski; Council-at-Large Brian Fischer; Council-at- Large Tammy Holtzmeier; 2 nd Ward Dennis McBride; 3 rd Ward Anthony Moore; 4 th Ward Scott Radcliffe; Council-at-Large Craig Witherspoon, Council President; Mayor Bryan Jensen; City Engineer Ryan Cummins; Service Director/Parks Director Michael Farmer; Planning and Economic Development Coordinator Pam Fechter; Law Director John Gasior; Finance Director William Logan; Clerk of Council Barbara Brooks CORRESPONDENCE Mayor Jensen gave the fire report for April and said there were 200 calls for the rescue squad and 54 calls for the fire truck this past month. The report was available in his office. The Clerk reported that Avon is slated to receive $34,953.56 in 2018 recycling grant funds from the Lorain County Solid Waste Management District. MINUTES OF THE WORK SESSION OF COUNCIL HELD MONDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 2018 A motion was made by Mr. McBride and seconded by Mrs. Holtzmeier to dispense with the reading of the minutes of the Work Session of Council held Monday, February 5, 2018, and to approve said minutes as published, and the vote was: Mr. Butkowski, yes ; Mr. Fischer, yes ; Mrs. Holtzmeier, yes ; Mr. McBride, yes ; Mr. Moore, yes ; Mr. Radcliffe, yes ; Mr. MINUTES OF THE WORK SESSION OF COUNCIL HELD MONDAY, APRIL 16, 2018 A motion was made by Mr. McBride and seconded by Mr. Radcliffe to dispense with the reading of the minutes of the Work Session of Council held Monday, April 16, 2018, and to approve said 1
minutes as published, and the vote was: Mr. Fischer, yes ; Mrs. Holtzmeier, yes ; Mr. McBride, yes ; Mr. Moore, yes ; Mr. Radcliffe, yes ; Mr. Butkowski, yes ; Mr. MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF COUNCIL HELD MONDAY, APRIL 23, 2018 A motion was made by Mr. McBride and seconded by Mr. Butkowski to dispense with the reading of the minutes of the Regular Meeting of Council held Monday, April 23, 2018, and to approve said minutes as published, and the vote was: Mrs. Holtzmeier, yes ; Mr. McBride, yes ; Mr. Moore, yes ; Mr. Radcliffe, yes ; Mr. Butkowski, yes ; Mr. Fischer, yes ; Mr. MINUTES OF THE SPECIAL MEETING OF COUNCIL HELD MONDAY, MAY 7, 2018 A motion was made by Mr. McBride and seconded by Mr. Moore to dispense with the reading of the minutes of the Special Meeting of Council held Monday, May 7, 2018, and to approve said minutes as published, and the vote was: Mr. McBride, yes ; Mr. Moore, yes ; Mr. Radcliffe, yes ; Mr. Butkowski, yes ; Mr. Fischer, yes ; Mrs. Holtzmeier, yes ; Mr. Witherspoon, yes. MINUTES OF THE LEGAL COMMITTEE MEETING OF COUNCIL HELD MONDAY, MAY 7, 2018 A motion was made by Mr. McBride and seconded by Mr. Fischer to dispense with the reading of the minutes of the Legal Committee Meeting of Council held Monday, May 7, 2018, and to approve said minutes as published, and the vote was: Mr. Moore, yes ; Mr. Radcliffe, yes ; Mr. Butkowski, yes ; Mr. Fischer, yes ; Mrs. Holtzmeier, yes ; Mr. McBride, yes ; Mr. ORDINANCE NO. 26-18 TO AMEND SECTION 1292.09(a) OF THE CODIFIED ORDINANCES TO MODIFY THE MINIMUM NUMBER OF OFF-STREET WAITING SPACES FOR DRIVE-THRU FACILITIES The Clerk read Ordinance No. 26-18 by title only, entitled: AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND SECTION 1292.09(a) OF THE CODIFIED ORDINANCES OF THE CITY OF AVON TO MODIFY THE MINIMUM NUMBER OF OFF-STREET WAITING SPACES FOR DRIVE-THRU FACILITIES The Chairman declared this to be the third of three readings of Ordinance No. 26-18 2
A motion was made by Mr. McBride and seconded by Mr. Fischer to adopt Ordinance No. 26-18, and the vote was: Mr. Radcliffe, no ; Mr. Butkowski, no ; Mr. Fischer, no ; Mrs. Holtzmeier, no ; Mr. McBride, no ; Mr. Moore, no ; Mr. Witherspoon, no. The vote was 0 for and 7 against and the Chairman declared the motion failed. ORDINANCE NO. 29-18 TO AMEND SECTIONS 432.42(a) and (c) OF THE CODIFIED ORDINANCES TO ESTABLISH TEXTING WHILE DRIVING AS A PRIMARY OFFENSE The Clerk read Ordinance No. 29-18 by title only, entitled: AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND SECTIONS 432.42(a) and (c) OF THE CODIFIED ORDINANCES OF THE CITY OF AVON TO ESTABLISH TEXTING WHILE DRIVING AS A PRIMARY OFFENSE The Chairman declared this to be the third of three readings of Ordinance No. 29-18. A motion was made by Mr. McBride and seconded by Mr. Butkowski to adopt Ordinance No. 29-18, and the vote was: Mr. Butkowski, yes ; Mr. Fischer, yes ; Mrs. Holtzmeier, yes ; Mr. McBride, yes ; Mr. Moore, yes ; Mr. Radcliffe, yes ; Mr. ORDINANCE NO. 36-18 TO AUTHORIZE THE FINAL PLAT AND SUBDIVIDER S AGREEMENT FOR AVONDALE SUBDIVISION NO. 6 The Clerk read Ordinance No. 36-18 by title only, entitled: AN ORDINANCE TO AUTHORIZE THE FINAL PLAT AND SUBDIVIDER S AGREEMENT FOR AVONDALE SUBDIVISION NO. 6 AND DECLARING AN EMERGENCY The Chairman declared this to be the second of three readings of Ordinance No. 36-18. The Chairman opened the floor to anyone present who would like to comment on this subdivision prior to the vote of City Council. Jonathan Clark of 3116 Fairview Drive stated this is our second home in Avon and he has lived here approximately 10 years now. He said we moved in our current home in August 2017 and the driveway was poured August 10 th. Mr. Clark advised over the last four months they have been working with Ryan Homes trying to have them review the driveway and see the cracking and such on the driveway. He stated if they were the only property with this issue they may have considered walking away, but there are multiple property owners in his development that are present tonight to talk about their driveways and how they are slowly deteriorating. Mr. Clark said that Ryan Homes keeps putting it off or blaming it on the City s de-icers and things of that nature. That is what motivated him to come to tonight s meeting because Ryan Homes claims they did not blame it on the City s de-icers. Mr. Clark held up a report from the Better Business Bureau where Ryan Homes says that the de-icer was a major contributing factor. He said they 3
are just asking Ryan Homes to back up what they build. If a driveway is poured in August it should not be falling apart in May. Mr. McBride clarified that Mr. Clark stated his driveway was poured on August 10th to which Mr. Clark confirmed that to be true. Mr. Clark added that there are conflicting statements from Ryan Homes whether or not they are to seal their driveway and whether or not they are within their warranty period. He felt that Ryan Homes will say whatever fits the current situation so they are not liable to fix it. Mr. Fischer inquired if it was Mr. Clark s entire driveway that was falling apart to which Mr. Clark responded that on his driveway it is the apron only. Mr. Clark stated he had this problem with the first home he built with Ryan Homes and once he went to the Better Business Bureau, Ryan Homes came back and fixed it. He speculated that in this instance there are a lot more driveways that need repaired and if they fix one they were going to have to fix them all. Mr. McBride, referencing a picture of Mr. Clark s driveway that was circulated, asked what portion of the driveway he was looking at to which Mr. Clark stated when facing the driveway from the road it is the front left. Mr. McBride stated he could see no real cracks, but there was a lot of spalling. Mr. Clark interjected that it was deteriorating away and flaking off and if it were just pitting he would not have come before Council, but that is a lot for a 6-8 month old driveway. Mr. McBride asked if they knew who the ready mix company was that poured their driveways. Mr. Clark answered that he did not; they were promised a detailed breakdown of all the work, but that was put off by builder. Amanda Johnson of 38481 Briar Lakes Drive stated she had not compared driveways until tonight, but she felt her driveway was probably one of the more severe as far as the condition. She distributed photos to City Council that indicates the deterioration. Nathan Kufel of 3147 Fairview Drive asked Council as to what type of perception did they want the City to emulate and did they want to be like Bay Village, Westlake, Solon or Beachwood. He asked if that was the kind of community we want if you look at the median income of those in other communities compared to Avon. Mr. Kufel stated he understood they have put all of their eggs in one basket with the Meritage Group and Ryan Homes and they do good work, but at the same time he felt it was just a business and they want to push through approvals and the reason they want to go with the next phase. He indicated these homeowners were in phase 1 and they still have not had all their problems fixed. The model home is pristine and built with the materials they were all sold on. Mr. Kufel advised he saved for 8 years to get his current home and he does not believe it is what was promised. He said he has had a couple of windows replaced, all new flooring, and a driveway. There were promises that were made and unfulfilled. He understood it puts the City in a little bit of a predicament as well, but he felt Ryan Homes should take care of what they started before they start to move on. He said his driveway looks like the others in attendance. He read from the warranty document Ryan Homes Warranty - Section 3.0 Concrete. Concrete surfaces should not disintegrate to the extent that the aggregate is exposed and loosened under normal conditions of weathering and use. However, surface spalling may occur during exceptionally cool conditions due to moisture and saturation and freezing. Ryan Homes is not responsible for deterioration caused by salt, chemicals, implements used and other factors beyond our control including moisture, saturation, freezing due to exceptional cold. The discussion included the aggregate used was most likely limestone #57. Mr. Kufel stated that Ryan Homes would most likely conclude that since the 57 limestone is not 4
exposed that was all that mattered. He advised if they look at all of the pock marks all over his driveway you can see stone right underneath where the surface is expelling. Mr. Kufel felt it was clear to him that it was a bad pour of concrete. The VP of Ryan Homes mentioned to Mr. Kufel that they have 3 companies that pour for them and when he asked who they were he could not name them, yet he could name everything on a spreadsheet as far as where problems were or were not occurring at others homes. He said he never received a ticket when he asked for one, but a neighbor has one and it is extremely vague. It basically states that it was a job and something was poured without any verification. Mr. Kufel asked if there is testing that is done when the City has something poured as he would imagine the City has a fairly high standard. He stated the same is not being done for the citizens and he felt that was not fair. He read from a document he said was provided from Ryan Homes; Furthermore, there were numerous freeze/thaw cycles this past winter in Cleveland and this was very difficult. Mr. Kufel advised yet when he looks at statistics of the Cleveland winter it varies by 2 to 3 degrees and he did not feel that was enough for 100+ throughout the community of concrete starting to filter away after less than 6 months. He emphasized that it was only after one winter. He referenced the warranty was only good for one year and then he was on the hook for $15,000 to replace his driveway. Mr. Kufel believes that if Ryan Homes admits fault to one property they were going to admit fault to many. He said he is not asking for a complete driveway replacement, but he invited Council to come look at his driveway and they would see it is falling apart and it is not that old. Mr. McBride asked if he or any of neighbors have taken a core sample of the concrete and had it tested. Mr. Kufel said it was one of those things they were hoping the proper thing would have been done first, but he is sure that can be done. He asked if we get that done is Ryan Homes going to stick to that core sample and abide by the rulings of it. Mr. Kufel speculated that Ryan Homes may just say they do not agree with the third party ruling and then they are out the time and investment and have a big hole in our driveway. He said if City Council says to take some core samples and if they find a certain deviation that was agreed upon then he felt that would be fair and that there would probably be a number of them who would agree to it. Mr. McBride pointed out that they have more than a one year warranty. He said they have a one year expressed warranty through Ryan Homes. There is also a warranty for a particular purpose and concrete does not fall apart like that and you do not see conditions in concrete like that after one or two years. The reason people use concrete is because it is robust. Mr. Kufel felt the other trickery that is being used is that he moved in to his house in December 2016, but he did not have his driveway poured because he wanted to wait until after winter. He said he had his driveway poured when many others in his neighborhood did and they did a bunch of them in a week and that was approximately May 2017. Mr. Kufel stated that Ryan Homes is now claiming that even though there is a 6 month difference from when he moved in until he poured his driveway that it still falls under the home warranty section and he is out of warranty now. He asked if it would technically fall under craftsmanship. Ryan Homes will take your money and they are the face of the organization that everyone sees, but it is still piece and parceled out. Mr. Kufel said Ryan Homes should have to take the good with the bad. He stated they took our money for these $300,000-$500,000 homes and now they want to move onto phase 6 and not take care of anything else. Mr. Kufel implored Council to think about that perception. The driveway is the first thing you notice when you pull onto someone s property and if it is falling apart he asked what does that say about the home builder. Mr. Moore asked if the same thing happened to any of the sidewalks that he described happening to the driveway. 5
Mr. Kufel said he did not walk the entire sidewalk, but the damage to his drive is mainly the skirt area. He indicated there are many more homes in Avon that have a lot more traffic and salt applied that do not have this problem; not even ten years later. He was talking about 6 months, one winter and said that is an issue. Mr. Witherspoon asked if the sidewalks were poured at the same time as the driveways. Mr. Kufel stated per house, yes in the same day. He indicated the ones with the problem were poured the same time as his by the same subcontractor and the ones that do not have an issue were poured by a different company. Mayor Jensen indicated he and the Service Director were frustrated that Ryan Homes was blaming the salt that was spread on the streets because the driveways with the deteriorating issues were spread throughout the development and were not a consistent pattern all the way through. He said he would ask Council and the Law Director to look into this situation further to find out if we need to change our standards and why this happens in some developments and not in others. Mayor Jensen asked what was different in the areas where there is deterioration. He said for Ryan Homes to blame the City or suggest the City had anything to do with it is troublesome and it bothers him. Mayor Jensen advised he would also state that the developer has nothing to do with the builder. He felt Ryan Homes needed to step up and figure out the best way to correct this problem and what can be done differently in the future. Mr. Kufel advised Ryan Homes is a big business and they probably have a team of lawyers, but he felt Carl Monday showing up would put them on the spot. He said the problem was that once Ryan Homes admits defeat it would start the domino effect and he believes that is where Ryan Homes is afraid to take responsibility. Mayor Jensen advised this Council has never been intimidated by someone suggesting they are going to send their legal team because we have to do things in a manner that is right. He said he knows this Council will do whatever they can to talk with Ryan Homes further to try to make sure we get this corrected. Mr. Butkowski stated for context, he represents the Ward where these homes are located. He said when this development first was installed there were issues and we called Ryan Homes on the carpet for those issues and they corrected those issues. Mr. Butkowski advised these current issues were brought to his attention and at the last meeting it was brought up to approve Subdivision No. 6. At that time there were still some outstanding issues that he was not comfortable with and he reached out to Vice President of Ryan Homes, Tom Sear. At that time he did not have any resolution from that initial call and he asked Council to hold off and give it more time to work this further. Since that time, he spoke with Mr. Sear and he would like to have a meeting with all the residents, bringing in the concrete contractor as well as some of the tradesman that actually put that concrete in place. He said he wants to be the facilitator to get that accomplished, but he is not in a position to push one way or the other. The reason to have everyone at the same table was because he has heard the stories of the back and forth. He wants everyone to be at the same table so everyone hears the same thing. Mr. Butkowski said he did not know what the resolution was going to be for this, but they were trying to do what is best and the administration is supporting this effort as well. He stated they want to do what is best for these residents because at the end of the day the contractors and builders will move on and we are left holding the bag and he does not want to be left holding the bag of a bunch of homes that are going to be falling apart. The Building Department has called Ryan Homes out on some issues to correct some of it in the past. Mr. Butkowski advised the residents in Avondale may not see it, but there has been a lot of work that has been going on with regards to this issue. While he does not know where it is going to end up they want to try to be here to help facilitate getting things corrected and done the right way regardless of who it is or what builder or what developer. He 6
said he appreciates having these pictures and he appreciates the residents coming to Council and voicing their opinions so we hear it directly from them. He thanked them and said he just wanted to provide that additional information to them. Jim Rumbaugh, President of the Meritage Group and the developer of Avondale, thanked Council and the administration for working with them over the past three or four years as we believe we have provided the quality of development that we said we were going to. He advised we have requirements and specifications that we have to meet. If not, we know your staff is going to make sure that everything is done the way it is supposed to be done. We are proud of the development in Avon that we have done. Mr. Rumbaugh stated we were trying to get development #5 and #6 done about a month or so ago. The City saw fit to approve Subdivision No. 5 as long as we worked on the stub street going into a new development which may or may not occur in the future. We believe we have agreed to everything that everyone wanted. We have all of our bonding in place and all of our fees are in place. We are not Ryan Homes. He does not have hundreds of attorneys. He is a small developer trying to do what is right in every municipality that we go into. He humbly requested City Council approve his development tonight. They would like to get the development completed. He said he was glad to do whatever he could to help, but they would like approval of the development. They have equipment sitting there and the pipe ready to go in and they were ready to move on the development. He thanked Council for everything they are doing and would really appreciate approval tonight. Mr. McBride inquired as to who the lots are committed to in this next phase. Mr. Rumbaugh stated he committed the entire plan to NVR (a parent company of Ryan Homes) four years ago similar to the plan in North Ridgeville that is committed to NVR. He cannot break the contract as he has certain dates that he has to meet. He is not a part of their specifications on what they pour or what windows they install, but he has the specifications that he has to meet on his end of the business just like they have to do. Part of his development is he has to get phase 5 and 6 completed. Whatever issues the citizens have, he wishes them well, but he has to get his part of the development done. He again confirmed that NVR has the entire development. Mr. Gasior advised he wanted to point out to the residents that Mr. Rumbaugh and the Meritage Group is really contracting with the City to put the improvements in, which consists of the sanitary sewer, the storm sewer, waterline and then the street itself. He said that is the end of the job for Meritage Group; they do not do anything else. Once the plat is recorded, Meritage s work is done and they move on to wherever else they need to build infrastructure. Ryan Homes then takes over and sells all those individual lots off of that plat to homebuyers and then the driveways and the sidewalks get poured through whoever has the contract. Mr. Gasior stated this particular entity who is here tonight asking for Council s action is strictly to put the road in and to put the infrastructure in so that you can actually sell lots. For clarification, Ryan Homes does the building etcetera. In answer to a question as to where phase 6 is located, Mr. Rumbaugh stated phase 6 is an extension of phase 5 because Council asked them to split phase 5 in half. He said they had 30 lots and installed 15 and now we are doing 15 more. It was noted it connects to the Amberwood Subdivision. Mr. Kufel inquired if there was going to be a road through there to which Mayor Jensen answered they would be installing a stub road and he indicated it on the map. Mr. Rumbaugh confirmed and said it was about 12 lots that were not completed yet and the rest of the entire development is done. He said we are trying to finish the development through the banking and all of the lending as they have to be done this year. Mr. Rumbaugh 7
stated Council asked us to put the stub road in going into the next development, which they agreed to do. All the paperwork is complete and all the engineering is done. Mr. Rumbaugh thanked Mr. Butkowski for facilitating that communication. Mark Wise of 3182 Fairview Drive stated everyone agrees the roads are in excellent condition comparatively. If the roads are getting all the salt and they are holding up with no spalling he asked if they could get that same concrete in their driveways. Tim Knotek of 3076 Fairview Drive asked who is in charge of signage as far as stop signs or yield signs that are installed in the developments. Mr. Knotek stated he works from home and everyday he sees people flying up and down the road and some of them are construction crews he saw drag racing one day with their trucks, which was absurd especially after school. There needs to be some kind of traffic control on the streets by Briar Lakes and Fairview such as a stop sign. He understands that stop signs cannot be used to regulate traffic speed, but said in this case there is traffic coming through from Amberwood and those motorists who are trying to bypass traffic on Detroit Road. Mr. Gasior stated it would be our Service Department because Mr. Knotek is talking about an area that has already been accepted by the City. Before Council accepts improvements it is required for the signage to be installed and the developer is responsible for that signage. Once Council has accepted the improvements then the signage is the responsibility of the City. He said he believes we use the Ohio Uniform Traffic Control Device Manual and follow those guidelines for the placement of speed limit and stop signs, etcetera. Mr. Gasior advised Mr. Knotek is correct as there are numerous court cases that establish the fact that if you are just posting stop signs at intersections to control speed they are considered illegal and someone can challenge their speeding ticket on that basis. He said the Service Director can certainly look into it and see what we can do. Puneet Wadwa of 3111 Fairview Drive said he is in the same boat as the others who spoke about their driveways. He stated where the driveway apron ends and the curb starts, he was told by Ryan Homes that the damage where the apron ends belongs to the City. Mr. Wadwa asked as to who was going to fix that area because there is a lot of damage as you enter into the driveway. He was told by Ryan Homes that the City would repair that area once all the other homes were in. Mr. Witherspoon asked as to what kind of damage Mr. Wadwa was referring to. Mr. Wadwa stated there are big chunks missing as you enter into the driveway and there are big cracks. Mr. Gasior advised that Mr. Farmer could look into it. He said there is a three year maintenance bond on the City streets and if we see that is the case we can exercise our rights as a City under that three year maintenance bond, but it needed to be pointed out to the Service Director Mr. Farmer. Mr. Farmer advised when we accepted the improvements of the development the back of the curbs are not broken up. As the house building goes on and the construction vehicles are being driven over the curbs is really what causes the problems. As much as the City would like to go back, he said it becomes an issue between the builder and the developer because when we accept the improvements the back of the curbs are not beat up like that. He agreed it is a part of the maintenance bond. Mr. Gasior said these things needed to be pointed out to the City and we will be sure to let the developer know that there is damage and that can be ironed out with Ryan Homes. He 8
advised Council is not going to accept something and then have to spend taxpayer dollars to repair it within that first three years as he did not believe that development was older than three years. Eric Broz of 3148 Fairview Drive said he had similar concerns of his fellow neighbors; he was a resident of Saddle Creek since 2003 and many of them are repeat Ryan Home buyers. We have had driveways that were exposed to the same winter, same de-icing salt and he finds it hard to believe the stories from Ryan Homes that it is the use of salt or because we had a cold winter. When looking at his driveway in Saddle Creek that was poured in 2003, it still looks great today. His driveway was poured in mid-september on Fairview Drive and it looks terrible. Mr. Broz does not believe that concrete should deteriorate like this after six months. He said he has been working with Ryan Homes warranty department since February pushing to have his driveway replaced and we have all received the same kind of response that it is cosmetic, it is because of winter and/or it is because of salt and that Ryan Homes is not going to do anything about it. Mr. Broz advised he does not want to be stuck with a $15,000 - $20,000 bill five years from now because his driveway has to be replaced. He said that he has spoken with Mr. Sear as well and the comment about not immediately sealing the driveway; was not conveyed to them. He did not seal his last driveway on Saddle Creek immediately. The neighbor to the left of him on Fairview had his driveway poured in August 2016 and it has been through two winters and it has not been sealed and it looks great. The driveway to the right of his was poured October of 2017 and that driveway looks fine too and is not sealed. Mr. Broz stated there seems to be a batch of driveways that were from this same summer to mid-fall time period that are having this deterioration issue. Regarding the comment about the sidewalks being poured at the same time, he said he has 3 or 4 sections of his sidewalk that seem very brittle to begin with that were broken off on the edges that Ryan Homes replaced. He said he questions whether that batch of concrete was brittle to begin with and never developed the strength it was supposed to because it was a bad mix or something else. He feels that nothing has been shown to him by Ryan Homes to prove that the right concrete was put in place in his driveway. All he is being told is that they are not covering its repair/replacement because of winter and de-icing salt. He is just hoping for some resolve. No further discussion. A motion was made by Mr. McBride and seconded by Mr. Fischer to suspend the rules and act on Ordinance No. 36-18, and the vote was: Mr. Fischer, yes ; Mrs. Holtzmeier, yes ; Mr. McBride, yes ; Mr. Moore, yes ; Mr. Radcliffe, yes ; Mr. Butkowski, yes ; Mr. A motion was made by Mr. McBride and seconded by Mr. Fischer to adopt Ordinance No. 36-18, and the vote was: Mrs. Holtzmeier, yes ; Mr. McBride, yes ; Mr. Moore, yes ; Mr. Radcliffe, yes ; Mr. Butkowski, yes ; Mr. Fischer, yes ; Mr. ORDINANCE NO. 38-18 REAPPROPRIATIONS The Clerk read Ordinance No. 38-18 by title only, entitled: 9
AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND AND SUPPLEMENT APPROPRIATIONS ORDINANCE NO. 98-17 AND DECLARING AN EMERGENCY Mayor Jensen advised these additional funds were for the improvements made to the Lion s Club Community Center. Mr. Farmer said as we entered the renovation of the Lion s Club Community Center at Northgate it was discovered that the electrical was not to code. We had to rip out all the electrical and start over. We installed a new alarm system and instead of putting in regular molding we added some wood and other extra items that were not a part of the original scope of work. There are louvers and new exhaust fans and there were a lot of repairs that went above and beyond the original budgeted amount. He said the work is now complete and it is a great product. We have ventilation we did not have before and there are a lot of good things happening at that location and it turned out to be a fantastic finished project. Mr. Logan clarified that the General Fund will transfer $25,000 to the Community Center Fund No. 252. Council originally appropriated $70,000 back in February. The total appropriation is $95,000 and approximately $90,000 includes all the work Mr. Farmer described. He wanted to make sure we kept all the funds coming out of Fund No. 252 because that is the Community Center Fund where we will depreciate these improvements over the course of time. He stated this is a revenue producing facility that now has much more potential. Mayor Jensen stated they will set a date in the next couple of weeks for Council to tour the center with the improvements although one or two Council Members have already been through it. He advised it is a completely different building and we started out hoping the improvements would not cost as much, but we did not want to put it off especially the electrical knowing it was not correct. He would let them know of a future Monday when the facility was not already rented out for Council to tour and see the improvements made. A motion was made by Mr. McBride and seconded by Mr. Radcliffe to suspend the rules and act on Ordinance No. 38-18, and the vote was: Mr. McBride, yes ; Mr. Moore, yes ; Mr. Radcliffe, yes ; Mr. Butkowski, yes ; Mr. Fischer, yes ; Mrs. Holtzmeier, yes ; Mr. A motion was made by Mr. McBride and seconded by Mr. Moore to adopt Ordinance No. 38-18, and the vote was: Mr. Moore, yes ; Mr. Radcliffe, yes ; Mr. Butkowski, yes ; Mr. Fischer, yes ; Mrs. Holtzmeier, yes ; Mr. McBride, yes ; Mr. RESOLUTION NO. R-22-18 TO AUTHORIZE THE MAYOR TO PARTICIPATE IN A COOPERATIVE PURCHASING PROGRAM WITH THE OHIO DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION, WINTER CONTRACT (018-19) FOR ROAD SALT The Clerk read Resolution No. R-22-18 by title only, entitled: 10
A RESOLUTION TO AUTHORIZE THE MAYOR TO PARTICIPATE IN A COOPERATIVE PURCHASING PROGRAM WITH THE OHIO DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION, WINTER CONTRACT (018-19) FOR ROAD SALT AND DECLARING AN EMERGENCY A motion was made by Mr. McBride and seconded by Mr. Butkowski to suspend the rules and act on Resolution No. R-22-18, and the vote was: Mr. Radcliffe, yes ; Mr. Butkowski, yes ; Mr. Fischer, yes ; Mrs. Holtzmeier, yes ; Mr. McBride, yes ; Mr. Moore, yes ; Mr. A motion was made by Mr. McBride and seconded by Mrs. Holtzmeier to adopt Resolution No. R-22-18, and the discussion was: Mr. Gasior noted this was not on Council s Work Session Agenda last week, but Mr. Farmer brought it to his attention over the last week. He said this is something we do not want to pass up and the deadline is May 18 th and is standard from previous years as the way we receive our salt for the upcoming winter season. The vote was: Mr. Butkowski, yes ; Mr. Fischer, yes ; Mrs. Holtzmeier, yes ; Mr. McBride, yes ; Mr. Moore, yes ; Mr. Radcliffe, yes ; Mr. REPORTS AND COMMENTS Mayor Jensen advised that Ms. Brooks is always very humble, but he wanted to thank her again for her hard work getting the grant money that is available for recycling. Everyone knows that in order to get the money you have to go through all the processes and make sure you dot all the I s and cross all the T s and she has done that. He said to see that we are receiving almost $35,000 to buy special things made of recycled material to be used throughout the community makes it a lot of fun for us. Mayor Jensen stated Mr. Schneider came to him not long ago and they talked about offering a solution to residents for disposing of unwanted items that would be difficult for them to do on their own. He said it was decided to put some dumpsters in some of the City parks and allow the residents to utilize them. There were 14 dumpsters that were filled this past weekend. In Northgate there were 6 dumpsters filled and they were the large 30 yard dumpsters. Mayor Jensen said that Mr. Schneider took it upon himself to go that extra step and there was extra help available for those who could not get their items in the dumpsters themselves. He stated we want to do whatever we can to help the residents in need and he felt it was a good thing that Mr. Schneider took upon himself. Mayor Jensen indicated Council had a copy of a letter from AT&T supporting the no texting while driving legislation. He said that Mr. Fischer originally brought to our attention the need for a no texting while driving law and maybe they did not think others outside the community were watching. It just goes to show that if you do the right things there are people out there that are watching and encouraging Council when they see that the City of Avon has decided to do something that other surrounding communities have not yet decided to do. The letter referenced some statistics that are kind of shocking when it said that 4 out of 10 drivers are distracted. Mayor Jensen commended Council for passing that Ordinance tonight. While he does 11
not believe it is a cure-all, it does give our police officers another tool to bring to the attention of distracted drivers. COUNCIL MEMBERS: Mr. Butkowski, Ward 1, updated Council that the ipads were ordered and he hoped they would be implemented soon. Mr. Fischer, At Large, said that is awesome news about the recycling grant and he thanked Ms. Brooks for her hard work. Mr. Fischer commended the other members of Council for passing the no texting while driving Ordinance unanimously. He advised our residents and visitors safety is of utmost importance to us and while it is not a cure-all, he indicated it was a move in the right direction. Mr. Fischer reminded us it is National Police Memorial Week and asked for continued prayers for their safety and to thank our Police Officers when you see them. Mrs. Holtzmeier, At Large, advised with the no texting while driving Ordinance she felt it was a good opportunity to reaffirm our timeline for enactment as well as signage. Mr. Witherspoon advised after it is signed it has 30 days before it can go into effect. He said once the legislation is signed the signs will be ordered. Mr. McBride, Ward 2, thanked Ms. Brooks for applying for the recycling grant as that was nice work. Mr. McBride stated he was starting to receive his annual spring calls from Northgate regarding junk vehicles and lack of property maintenance. He said some of the property owners may need some scrutiny and some reminders to take care of their yard and get rid of their junk vehicles. Mr. Moore, Ward 3, said people have asked him about kids being able to go down into the retention basin near the exit at Schwartz Road Park. Mr. Farmer stated there is going to be some fencing installed around that area to keep kids out of the pond; obviously the opening of the driveway would remain open. Mr. Moore advised secondly, kids are going back and forth a lot from the pavilion to the soccer field and it seemed that some vehicles were going too fast in and out of Schwartz Road Park. He inquired if something could be done or if some additional patrol in the area would alleviate the problem. Mr. Farmer said he was looking into installing some signage in that area where the crosswalk is located as there is no crosswalk sign. He stated they are also looking at installing fencing there as well to keep kids from coming out of the soccer field to direct them. Mr. Moore said that would be a good idea and he thanked Mr. Farmer. Mr. Radcliffe, Ward 4, had no comments. Mr. Witherspoon, Council President, deferred the floor to Ms. Brooks and asked her to tell a little bit about the upcoming Pride Day event. Ms. Brooks stated the French Creek Foundation, the Garden Club, the Lion s Club, the Girl and Boy Scouts, Willoway Nursery will be planting flowers and cleaning the parks this coming Saturday, May 19 th from 9:00 am to noon along with other cities in Lorain County as a part of the Keep America Beautiful campaign. 12
Mr. Witherspoon stated it was a big job and a couple people go with Ms. Brooks and purchase the flowers and he thanked her for all her efforts. He said it would not be a Pride Day without all the work that goes into planning the event. DIRECTORS/ADMINISTRATION: Mr. Cummins, City Engineer, had no comments. Mr. Farmer, Service Director/Parks Director, advised he wanted to bring to Council s attention that the Norfolk & Southern Railroad is looking to close SR83 at the rail crossing and Miller Road. He said the railroad is going to be making railroad tie repairs and rail repairs and the planning closure was from May 21 st thru the 25 th. Mr. Farmer stated the traffic will be detoured from SR254 to SR611to SR301to SR6 since they are closing a State Route they have to keep the trucks on the State Routes. He commented that the railroad does not provide the cities with the scope of the work being done. Ms. Fechter, Economic Development/Planning Coordinator, thanked Council for their consideration regarding the Drive-Thru stacking Ordinance. She said she appreciates the thought behind it and she will take that information back to the Zoning Board of Appeals and let them know the Ordinance was voted down at both Planning Commission and City Council. Mr. Gasior, Law Director, had no comments. Mr. Logan, Finance Director, advised last week the City passed the two renewal levies, the street levy and the parks levy. He said that over 3,000 voters passed them at a good margin of 75%. Mr. Logan thanked Council and the voters for supporting those issues and stated it was nice to know the City has that five year stream of revenue in those two funds. AUDIENCE: No comments were made from the audience. ADJOURN: 8:30 p.m. A motion was made by Mr. Fischer and seconded by Mr. Radcliffe to adjourn the Regular Meeting of Council, and the vote was: Mr. Fischer, yes ; Mrs. Holtzmeier, yes ; Mr. McBride, yes ; Mr. Moore, yes ; Mr. Radcliffe, yes ; Mr. Butkowski, yes ; Mr. 13