Continental Village Council met in regular session on June 27, 2023 in the fire station meeting room with Mayor Miller presiding. Members present were: Knipp, Varner, Bartley, Armey, Streicher & Sullivan. Also present were Mayor Miller, Administrator Prowant, Fiscal Officer Darby, Police Chief Hardy & Solicitor Welch.
Visitors were: Log of visitors attached.
The meeting opened with the Pledge of Allegiance.
Varner made a motion and Streicher seconded to approve minutes of previous meeting, six yeas, motion carried. Armey made a motion to pay all the bills and Sullivan seconded, six yeas, motion carried. Bartley made a motion and Varner seconded to approve the receipts since the last meeting, six yeas, motion carried. Then & Now Purchase Orders over $3,000: Ohio Sanitary Services, $3049.70 Replace catch basin at Oak & Sixth Streets.
BUILDING PERMITS: Three permits were reviewed by council, including: moving a garage & installing cement at 200 N. 7th; concrete patio at 633 Cardinal Lane and replace windows & entry doors at 106 E. Elm. Bartley made a motion to approve all the permits and Streicher seconded. Six yeas, motion carried.
Additional Permit Considered: Continental United Methodist Church/Lifewise Academy wanted to have a permit issued to begin to remodel a garage into a classroom located off of 6th St. however, the building is not in their name at this time. The closing date is Thursday, June 28. The Village can not issue a permit to them until the property is in their name. Zoning had met prior to the meeting to consider changing the zoning on the property from Residential to Commercial but found that churches and schools can be zoned as Residential so no action was taken. Streicher moved to hold a Special Meeting on July 5th at 7 pm to review the building permit after the property is in Continental United Methodist Church’s name and Bartley seconded. Six yeas, motion carried.
House Trailer Ordinance: Steve Clementz asked council for clarification on the house trailer ordinance. He purchased an old mobile home at S. 4th and W. Maple Streets and would like to tear it down and move in a 1999 mobile home that has vinyl siding and a shingled roof. He wanted to know if the 30-day window to replace the mobile home started when he began demolition or when he removed the frame. Council stated it started when he removed the frame.
Mayor Miller suggested sending the ordinance to zoning to consider if the age of the mobile homes should be reviewed.
HEARING OF THE PUBLIC:
Recently, a number of residents received a letter from EDP Renewables about installing a solar field behind their homes and a large crowd came to voice their opinions to Council. Mayor Miller spoke first and stated, at this time the Village can not vote on this issue as a Building Permit has not been submitted. It is believed that the project is not imminent at this point as the permit to connect to the grid has not been approved. Solicitor Welch has been involved in some of these projects and he asked the public to be patient as Council works through all the issues involved with a project this large. Council is working on an ordinance to regulate how and where renewable energy may be installed within the village corporation limits.
Some of the questions asked are: 1) What is the responsibility of the village to protect the property values and health of its residents? 2) If a building permit is presented to council, can they vote it down? 3) Could the village be taken to court over this? 4) How is the property zoned and would it have to be rezoned? 5) Is council aware of the health risks of someone with a heart defibrillator being in close proximity?
Consumer Confidence Report: The CCR will be included in the Water/Sewer billing this month, so look for an envelope instead of a postcard from the Continental Water/Wastewater Department.
EXECUTIVE SESSION: At 8:15 pm, Armey moved to go into Executive Session to discuss the pending litigation with the Prowant property. Varner seconded the motion. Roll call vote: Knipp: Yea; Varner: Yea; Bartley: Yea; Armey: Yea; Sullivan: Yea; and Streicher: Yea. Six yeas, motion carried. Mayor Miller thanked everyone for coming to the meeting to voice their opinions and invited them to step out into the Fire Dept. while council was updated on the court case during the executive session.
At 8:40 pm, Streicher motioned to come out of executive session and Armey seconded. Six yeas, motion carried. Let the record show that no action was taken in executive session.
Reimbursement: Council granted permission to Darby to reimburse an employee for gasoline purchased for the village. The white truck is in the shop for a major repair so she also asked to pay the employee for mileage when he has to use his personal vehicle. Welch stated, he will need to keep a notebook of what his odometer reading is when coming on duty and when leaving duty.
Fire Department: A fireman is resigning on July 1st due to health reasons and Darby asked to go ahead and pay him for his runs this year so she can take him off the roster. Also, the fire department interviewed some candidates to replace firemen who have retired or resigned. They presented three candidates for council’s approval, Justin Winstead, Ryan Wehri and Reed Warnement. Armey moved to approve the recommended candidates and Streicher seconded. Six yeas, motion carried.
Property/Casualty/Liability Insurance Renewal: Darby received the renewal for the village’s insurance policy, this is the third year of a three-year policy. The renewal invoice is for $38,635 for the year after the advantage discount of $7,461. The Fire Chief reviewed the coverage for the fire trucks and raised the value so the trucks are at 80% replacement cost. Property and Equipment limits were also increased 5% as an inflationary measure by the underwriter. Armey moved to pay the invoice and Sullivan seconded the motion. Six yeas, motion carried.
Budget: Darby has a rough draft of the budget ready which she will send to the finance committee. A Finance committee meeting will be held at 6:30 pm on July 5th at 6:30 prior to the Special Meeting. The Budget will need to be passed prior to July 20th. The Budget hearing will be held on July 18th at 6:30 p.m.
Renewable Energy Ordinance: Council discussed the ordinance regulating the placement and requirements for large scale renewable energy facilities within the Village corporation limits. Armey made a motion to approve the first reading of the ordinance and Streicher seconded the motion. Roll call vote: Knipp: Yea; Varner: Yea; Bartley: Abstain; Armey: Yea; Sullivan: Abstain; and Streicher: Yea. Four yeas, motion carried. Council will review the suggested changes to the ordinance at the Special Meeting to be held Wednesday, July 5th at 7 p.m.
Mayor Miller wished everyone in attendance a Happy and safe Fourth of July.
Next Council meeting: Wednesday, July 5th at 7 p.m. in the fire station meeting room.
Bartley made a motion to adjourn with no further business; Varner seconded it. Six yeas. Meeting adjourned.
