Acting President of Council Tom Vanover called Council to order on
April 18, 2007, at 7:00 p.m.
The governmental body and those in attendance recited the pledge of
allegiance. Mr. Knox gave the invocation.
Mr. Knox took roll call. Present were Council members Danbury, Galster,
Harlow, Squires, Vanover, and Wilson. Mrs. McNear was absent.
The minutes of April 4 were approved with six affirmative votes. Mr.
Squires the word “attached” should be changed to “attacked” twice on
the first page.
PROCLAMATION FOR RICHARD IAN COTTERILL, EAGLE SCOUT
Mayor Webster read a proclamation proclaiming April 22, 2007 as Richard
Ian Cotterill day in Springdale.
Mark Kluesmeier, Scoutmaster of Troop 912, said this is our third Eagle
Scout. He is an asset to the community and to the troop. Boy Scouts is about building good
citizens and mature young men who set a great example for those who follow. Thank you for
honoring him.
Mr. Danbury, Mrs. Harlow, Mr. Squires and Mr. Vanover offered their
congratulations. Mr. Danbury said this will put you five steps ahead in applying to
colleges or for jobs. I commend the scout leader as well. Mrs. Harlow said it takes a
family to grow an Eagle Scout.
COMMITTEE AND OFFICIAL REPORTS
Civil Service Commission – Tony Potts said we tested for four
positions. We had 199 applications for the violations bureau clerk and 92 took the test.
We interviewed twenty-three candidates and certified the names of the top ten to City
Administration. There were 235 applicants for the administrative secretary position in the
Police Department and 153 took the test. We certified the top ten candidates to
Administration. Twelve signed up to take the test for Assistant Fire Chief and nine took
the test. Results went out last week and we are in the ten day wait period to see if there
are any challenges. The top three names will be certified next week. Four hundred ten
people applied for the administrative assistant position in the Building Department and
239 took the test. We will interview the top twenty or so the week of May 6.
Rules and Laws - no report
Public Relations - no report
Public Health, Safety & Welfare -
no report
Public Works - no report
Public Utilities - no report
Capital Improvements – Mr. Danbury said the signal work at Progress Place is
substantially complete. Sidewalk construction is substantially complete. They will be
sealing and painting the bridge walls later this month. Construction on the roadway
lighting will begin in late April. Final asphalt will be put in place in late April with
completion in mid May. The construction of the bridge for Kemper Road Phase 3 is
anticipated to start next Monday. The widening is supposed to start in early May and
should be completed in September 2007. The stage 3 design of the SR 4 continuous
northbound lane at Glensprings should be submitted in mid May. Construction should begin
in 2009. The SR 4 ODOT urban paving from Glensprings to 800 feet south of Crescentville
should be starting in May and completed mid July. We should be starting the construction
for Kemper Road improvements at Tri-County Mall in early May with completion in July. The
preliminary grading plan is complete for the Veteran’s Memorial. We are completing
the landscaping options and working with suppliers on statue options and marker stones.
Construction should start in August 2007.
Finance Committee - no report
Planning Commission – Mr. Galster said there was no meeting but I want to say there
was a minor change to Ordinance 21. Paragraph g was added in reference to maintenance of
those electronic signs.
Board of Zoning Appeals - no
report
Board of Health - Mayor Webster reported the regulation for pool fees was passed. The fees
had not been increased in several years but they are still in line with what everyone else
is charging.
Veteran’s Memorial Committee – Mr. Wilson stated the committee is working on a
golf outing for the month of September.
O-K-I – Mr. Knox said there was an address at the meeting by Mr. Christopher
BortzBorst, Cincinnati Council member. He said Cincinnati is looking to establish a
trolley car line in downtown Cincinnati so people can park their cars and move around more
easily since there will be fewer cars on the road. This is in the very rudimentary stages
and they are trying to find a way to run them into Kentucky. They are going do it with a
tax increment financing plan which will be charging the businesses along the route, yet
they are going to insure that the Cincinnati public schools don’t lose any money. I
would like to see them take a hard look at this.
Mayor’s Report – Mayor Webster stated we had our third annual State of the City
address sponsored by the Springdale Chamber of Commerce. Three years ago when we started
this event Jeff and I participated. There were eighteen people in attendance. Last year
there were twenty-seven and this year we had fifty people attend. All of our major retail
establishments were there. There were twenty-five to thirty Chamber members. Mr. Tulloch
did a marvelous job submitting some of the plans we had.
Mayor Webster read a proclamation for Arbor Day. Mayor Webster said I would like to invite
everyone to participate in our Arbor Day celebration April 27.
Clerk of Council/Finance Director - Mr. Knox recommended Resolution 8-2007.
Administrator’s Report – Mr. Parham reported on April 13 we received bids for
the fiber optic cable installation for our camera system. We received a $50,000 grant from
the Department of Homeland Security for the Installation of cameras in the Tri-County Mall
area. Another $100,000 was budgeted from the City for this project. The low bidder for the
project was Bansal Construction Company with a bid of $41,289. The engineer’s
estimate was $70,000. Because the low bid was so much lower than the engineer’s
estimate, it may allow us to install a few more cameras quicker than we had planned. We
would like to request legislation at the next meeting.
Mayor Webster said this system will not be used to issue citations for someone running a
red light. The surveillance is in case there is an incident at the mall.
Mr. Wilson stated there is a big difference in price. Are we looking at the same caliber
of equipment.?
Mr. Parham replied the bids were all over the board ranging from $41,000 to $96,000. TEC
Engineering has been spearheading this project along with Captain Hafer of the Police
Department. They feel confident that we will get the necessary quality of cable and that
it will meet our needs and requirements for this particular project. There are two tests
that have to be run on the cable after it arrives. The first test is to determine that the
cable received is in good working condition. The second test will be taken after the
actual installation to make sure the cable has not been damaged during the installation.
Mr. Wilson said I was just curious as to why the lowest bid was less than half of the
highest. Usually when you see a spread like this somebody is missing something.
Mr. Parham said we did have some concerns with the low bidder. We have not personally
engaged in any work with them. They were a part of the Phase II streetscape project. There
were a few challenges but that was also a project administered by the State. TEC feels
confident that the quality we will get from Bansal the same as we would get with the one
at $96,000.
Mayor Webster said all you can do is make sure the specs are properly written and that the
low bidder is adhering to those specs. If that’s the case and there’s no track
record of negligent work, there’s no reason not to give the work to Bansal.
Mr. Galster asked will they have to have a performance bond? Mr. Parham replied yes.
Law Director’s Report -
no report
Engineer’s Report - no
report
COMMUNICATIONS
Mr. Knox said about ten years ago Mr. Vanover requested the people of
Springdale to help a young man who had a presidential internship and needed some money to
live on and an airline ticket to get there. We got him there and he went on from there to
become a member of the United States Military Academy. Mr. Vanover and I received letters
this week that read: “The Superintendent and Class of 2007 of the United States
Military Academy announce the graduation exercises Saturday, May 26, West Point, NY. One
of the people graduating will be Second Lieutenant Joseph A. Gratton who is a Princeton
High School graduate of the year 2003.”
Mr. Vanover said I am quite proud because Mr. Gratton was one of my
baseball kids. He will be an asset to the country.
COMMUNICATIONS FROM THE AUDIENCE - none
ORDINANCES AND RESOLUTIONS
Public Hearing
ORDINANCE NO. 21-2007 “AUTHORIZING AN AMENDMENT TO THE CODIFIED ORDINANCES OF THE
CITY OF SPRINGDALE TO PROVIDE FOR A NEW SECTION 153.534 ELECTRONIC HIGHWAY SIGNS IN
PLANNED UNIT DEVELOPMENT ZONING DISTRICTS”
Mr. Galster made a motion to adopt and Mr. Squires seconded.
Mr. Galster said if you look at Attachment A, it says this for a sign in a PUD development
to advertise only businesses that are part of that subject PUD. These signs are used for
the benefit of Springdale businesses. It’s not like it’s an outdoor billboard
advertisement.
Mrs. Harlow asked when is the sign going up? Will it be during the construction period?
Mr. Galster responded we don’t have an application right now. We had a preliminary
application from the mall but their package never included signage approval.
Mrs. Harlow said I’m just concerned with the construction and the confusion that
accompanies that construction. They do move the lanes around a little bit and I’d
hate to see signage that would take the drivers’ eyes of that road for any period of
time at all.
Mr. Galster replied we would be concerned about that whether it is construction season or
non-construction season. One of the reasons a committee was formed was to make sure we
create an ordinance that addresses those issues, such as how often it could change, how
bright it is, etc.
Mayor Webster stated I would hope someone wants to take advantage of this inside the next
four years. I hear what you are saying about the construction but we are going to be
saddled with construction on that roadway until 2010. I’m very happy to see Planning
Commission take a look at this. I think this is something that will have to evolve. I
think it’s a sign of the future. It doesn’t mean we’re going to have
blinking signs all up and down SR 4 and Kemper Road and SR 747 but I think this is a real
good start. This is strictly for an on-premise sign.
Mr. Vanover said we have asked Planning Commission to address the smaller developments and
come forth with guidelines for those. As everyone is aware, I think this is the future of
signage and I think it’s better to be proactive than reactive.
Ordinance 21-2007 passed with six affirmative votes.
ORDINANCE NO. 25-2007 “AUTHORIZING THE MAYOR AND CLERK OF COUNCIL/FINANCE DIRECTOR TO
ENTER INTO A CONTRACT WITH CDS ASSOCIATES, INC., TO PROCEED WITH DESIGN SERVICES TO
DEVELOP FINAL PLANS AND SPECIFICATIONS FOR THE WEST KEMPER ROAD IMPROVEMENTS PROJECT AT SR
4 TO 500 FEET EAST OF HICKORY STREET AND DECLARING AN EMERGENCY”
Mr. Danbury made a motion to adopt and Mr. Wilson seconded.
Ordinance 25-2007 passed with six affirmative votes.
ORDINANCE NO. 26-2007 “AN ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING AN AGREEMENT WITH THE OHIO DEPARTMENT
OF TRANSPORTATION REGARDING IMPROVEMENTS AT THE SR 747/I-275 INTERCHANGE”
Mr. Danbury made a motion to read Ordinance 26-2007 by title only. Mr. Galster seconded.
The motion passed with six affirmative votes.
Mr. Knox expanded saying it says at the I275/SR 747 interchange to correct the inefficient
signal phasing and geometrics by relocating westbound I275 off ramp and provide additional
left turn lane from northbound SR 747 to westbound I275 including widening the westbound
I275 on ramp and providing three southbound SR 747 lanes through the intersection with
Ramp F.
Mr. Parham said if you look at the diagram attached to Administrator’s Report of
Pending Legislation, the shaded areas are the improvements for this project. Adjusting the
off ramp at westbound I275 at the lower part of the diagram is one of the improvements to
the project. If you look at the SR747 northbound lanes you’ll see they are showing
two left turn movements onto westbound I275 in the shaded area. The final leg is a third
southbound lane on SR 747 will be added to that goes through the on ramp of westbound
I275.
Mr. Galster said now I’m more confused because I thought the on ramp to westbound
I275 would be shown as a shaded area. Is that just on SR 747? Is there actually no work on
the ramp?
Mr. Parham said right now on SR 747 if you are heading southbound, there is a lane that
drops off at the on ramp. That lane will continue through the interchange.
Mr. Galster said the ordinance reads that it is a widening of the actual on-ramp, Ramp F
and it’s not. It’s actually a widening of SR 747.
Mr. Shvegzda said the original basis of this was to provide the double left from
northbound SR 747 onto the westbound on ramp. There is some work done on the ramp to
accommodate that second left turn lane.
First reading.
ORDINANCE NO. 27- 2007 “AUTHORIZING THE MAYOR AND CLERK OF COUNCIL/FINANCE DIRECTOR
TO ENTER INTO A CONTRACT WITH HCC BENEFITS CORPORATION TO PROVIDE FOR STOP-LOSS INSURANCE
AND DECLARING AN EMERGENCY”
Mr. Squires made a motion to adopt and Mrs. Harlow seconded.
Mr. Parham said this is our annual rate increase that we receive from our stop loss
carrier, HCC Benefits, as well as Ordinance 28, our third party administrator, for the
health insurance program. Unfortunately, our contract year that runs from May 1st to April
30th was not one of our best. We have a specific stop loss limit of $30,000 for each
individual who is insured. We had at least five individuals to exceed that limit... It
wasn’t one of the healthiest years for us. Two of those five individuals are no
longer employed. Another was a premature baby who is doing much better this year and
making good progress. We entered into a corridor that provides some cushion for the stop
loss carrier. With the corridor , we have to buy more risk above the $30,000 on a
cumulative basis. The corridor number is $53,438. Once we pierce the $53,438 is when we
begin to receive reimbursement from the stop loss carrier. HCC Benefits’ proposal
increased the corridor amount from $53,438 to $55,000 for this year. This represents a 2.9
percent increase. Our rates for a single actually decreased from $57.51 per single
contract to $57.20. The family coverage went from $128.73 to $131.21, a 1.9% increase. Our
aggregate rate decreased from $6.65 per contract to $5.46 per contract, a 22 percent
decrease.
Mr. Parham said for Ordinance 28 we were locked into a two-year rate with United Medical
Resources... The only adjustment is for access to the HealthSpan Provider Network. The
savings experienced by participating in the provider network has made a tremendous
difference for us and our program. We average about 50 percent savings ononof our health
insurance costs. The proposed rate increase would go from $5.50 to $5.75 per employee per
month. I request Council’s support for both ordinances.
Ordinance 27-2007 passed with six affirmative votes.
ORDINANCE NO. 28-2007 “AUTHORIZING THE MAYOR AND CLERK OF COUNCIL/FINANCE DIRECTOR TO
ENTER INTO AN ADMINISTRATIVE AGREEMENT WITH UNITED MEDICAL RESOURCES (UMR) AS THE THIRD
PARTY ADMINISTRATOR OF THE CITY’S SELF-FUNDED HEALTH INSURANCE PROGRAM AND DECLARING
AN EMERGENCY”
Mr. Squires made a motion to adopt and Mr. Wilson seconded.
Mr. Parham said the beauty of a self-funded health insurance program is that you have the
ability to design the plan to cover those things that you deem are necessary to be
covered. The other part of that is that if you appropriate funds but don’t spend
those funds, then those still remain in your coffer. With a traditional program, once you
appropriate them, you are going to spend all that you appropriate. Over the last couple of
years we have not had the best seasons. We are examining a program out there very similar
to our property and casualty program where we pool through Miami Valley Risk Management.
There is a group that started out with school districts only. They have begun to
incorporate public jurisdictions into their organization. It allows us to remain as a
self-funded plan; however, it gives the appearance of a traditionally funded program. It
will help us begin to stabilize some of our costs. We have a population, that once they
start with us, they usually don’t leave, and their dependents also join our plan. For
the most part, we have a mature population. Our costs may reflect some of those
situations. If everything works out as we examine this program, we may be back before you
in a couple of months suggesting we look at joining this program.
Ordinance 28-2007 passed with six affirmative votes.
RESOLUTION R8-2007 “EXEMPTING MUNICIPAL PURCHASES UP TO $500.00 FROM THE
CERTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS OF ARTICLE VII, SECTION F. CONTRACTS AND EXPENDITURES OF THE
CHARTER OF THE CITY OF SPRINGDALE”
Mr. Squires made a motion to adopt and Mrs. Harlow seconded.
Mr. Knox said as was discussed at the last Council meeting, a purchase order has to be
signed by two people in order to go forward, that being the City Administrator or Mayor
and me. In most cases they have all three signatures. We are talking about moving away
from purchase orders for things that cost between $200 and $500. We have a sheet that
comes out showing all these purchase orders and that sheet must be signed by the City
Administrator and me. So we are not losing control over this, we are just generating less
paperwork.
Resolution R8-2007 passed with six affirmative votes.
OLD BUSINESS
Mr. Danbury said I have tickets for Springdale Night at the Reds game. I received a call
from Jim Knippenberg at the Cincinnati Enquirer. He is putting together a story of people
who do the national anthem so they will be taking a picture of the kids and it will be in
the paper May 5th. The Community Center still has tickets.
NEW BUSINESS
Mr. Knox stated we have a request for a new liquor license, D5I for the
old Karlo’s Restaurant. There were no objections.
Mr. Vanover said I have a letter from Walter Linnefield asking us to
pass a resolution in support of HB 117 concerning the cable company.
Mr. Squires stated I would like some background. What will Springdale
lose?
Mayor Webster said we can pass a resolution to join forces to protect
our rights but what rights do we have? I can’t endorse this.
Mr. Knox said there will be a meeting at ICRC next Thursday to discuss
this. I will be attending and if anyone else would like to join me we can find out what
the real objections are and where they can hurt us. As I understand it now it allows the
cable companies to unilaterally drop out of the contract. We can’t do it to them but
they can do it to us. I can send a memo out after the meeting letting everyone know what
was said at the meeting.
MEETINGS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS
Opening Day
-
April 28
Board of Zoning Appeals
-
May 15
COMMUNICATIONS FROM THE AUDIENCE - none
UPDATE ON LEGISLATION STILL IN DEVELOPMENT
Ordinance 26-2007
-
May 2
RECAP OF LEGISLATIVE ITEMS REQUESTED
Cameras in the Tri County mall area
- May
2
Council adjourned at 8:08 p.m.
Respectfully
submitted,
Edward
F. Knox
Clerk
of Council/Finance Director
Minutes Approved:
Kathy McNear, President of Council
__________________________, 2007
City of Springdale Council
April 18 2007