By Andrew Walsh
awalsh@wbcowqel.com
Galion City Council President Carl Watt ushered in the most recent public comment session with a request there be no personal attacks and no name calling.
“If either takes place, your presentation will be ended,” Watt stated.
What followed mostly conformed to Watt’s request, but some spirited exchanges still did occur. That being said, nothing rose to the level that required Watt to enforce his opening statement.
Roberta Wade stated the current government, “has a lack of respect for the law and the truth.” She questioned the utility rates, wondering way rates remain at such high levels when there is a $3 million balance in the electrical fund.
At the last regular council meeting there was another significant stretch of public comment. At this time Watt encouraged people to express these views at committee meetings which is a better venue for input. Wade interpreted these comments as Watt discouraging people from coming to council meetings to express their concerns. She tied this in to a larger “tone of bullying” coming from the city government.
Howard Morrow was another who took issue with the government’s honesty. He specifically refuted a statement that council member Shirley Clark made at the last regular session. Morrow stated that Clark said his input cost the city a contract to bring in a Kroger supermarket. He questioned where she got her information and flatly rejected the notion that negotiations with Kroger ever even happened.
Morrow also criticized the handling of the Southeast Storm Water Project. One of the agenda items was ordinance 2014-85 to allow the Safety-Service Director to bid this project.
“Has anyone seen the plans?” Morrow asked.
During the discussion of this ordinance, Morrow raised his concerns again. He stated that Galion’s Ordinance 933 expressly forbid the Council from bidding a project for which official plans have not been submitted.
Mayor O’Leary countered that this project has been in the works since at least 2012, which was well before most of the current members of government were in office. This project has been proceeding somewhat stop-start since then, but the government needs the ability to bid it out so it can advance and funds from the OPWC can be attained. When Morrow offered that a project cannot be bid until funds for it have been appropriated, O’Leary countered that the money was appropriated in 2013.
Morrow would not give up the fight, however, and repeatedly stated that the city was running afoul of its own laws.
City Treasurer Paula Durbin also made public comment, once again raising the issue of her limited access to the city’s accounting system. She stated that cannot so much as view the system, and was unable to reconcile payroll of late. Watt and Auditor Brian Treisch stated that they were unaware that she had no viewing power at all. They were under the impression that she could view numbers without interacting with any of the programs. They promised to look into this.
At the end of the meeting, City Law Director Thomas Palmer raised an issue that clearly had he felt duty bound to point out. Some time ago, it became practice for the meetings to open with a roll call not just of council but of elected officials and the safety-service director. Palmer continued by stating that Council Rule 32 mandates attendance for these officials. Durbin is herself one of these officials and has regularly failed to attend council meetings. It was only when she began attending meetings to make public comment that said she became aware of this rule. That being said, it should also be noted that she left this evening’s council meeting about halfway through.
Palmer was quick to point out that this is a rule City Council could change should it so wish, but as it stands this is a rule that is on the books and it is not being enforced.
“Is it still council’s desire that the city treasurer attend council meetings? It is certainly up to the council to revisit,” Palmer stated. “I respectfully request clear direction on this.”
Watt added that he has had conversations with each council member individually about this issue, and he urged each member to contact Palmer within the next week.
There was a public hearing and subsequent ordinance votes about zoning changes. The first zoning change would be for the health services district only, and adjust the 40-feet setback for structures only to allow for a five-feet setback for parking lots. This was passed on emergency legislation to allow for the hospital to proceed with a paving project this year.
The other zoning changes center primarily on Residential District 3. This is one of the oldest zones in the city, and the current zoning makes it difficult for any sort of improvements to be made to these properties. Legislation adjusting the required property widths, depths, etc., was passed on a first reading.
The next council meeting will be held at 7 p.m. on Nov. 12 due to Veterans Day falling on a Tuesday.