The Metamora Village Council held their meeting on Wednesday, January 18th at 8:00 p.m. The meeting began with the Pledge of Allegiance before council heard from members of the public.
Christopher P. Rybak spoke to council regarding the results of the smoke testing for the sanitary sewer system by CT Consultants. 99 defects were observed with 74 of those being considered minor.
It was suggested that the village begin with the catch basins that were identified as defective during testing.
A dye test will need to be performed, and if the basins are connected to the sanitary system, they will need to be rerouted into a nearby ditch, waterway, or storm sewer.
Another issue noted was that residents who have downspouts going into the sanitary system will need to have them rerouted.
A letter will be sent out to residents to have them disconnected from the sewer system.
Residents who have a missing or broken cap at their clean-outs should have a new one installed.
“Having private property owners work with us is greatly needed because their items are directly connected to the system.”
It was also suggested to have rain guards installed under the manholes that were marked as defective.
Maintenance workers with the village will be attending a confined space training session and will then be able to go into manholes to look more closely at what is taking place.
Replacing and repairing the lift station has already had an impact and has helped with the efficiency of the system, it was stated.
Other concerns were then discussed before moving on to have council approve the minutes for the previous meeting held on January 4th.
Reading of the bills took place next with the list of bills being approved by council. The rules were then suspended by council who moved to approve Ordinance 2023-01 establishing PTO and holiday pay for Fiscal Officer Heather Lumbrezer, retroactive to January 4th, 2023.
Ordinance 2023-02 was also passed and referenced entering into contract with NWO Control for mosquito spraying, with a minimum of 6 applications costing $182.29 per treatment.
The rules were suspended for 2023-2 in order to pass the ordinance under emergency provisions. The confined space class for maintenance employees was discussed again next.
The class will take place in Swanton and is at no cost to the village. A motion was made to donate $100.00 to the Village of Swanton for the training.
Under old business, the village received a letter from the State of Ohio regarding the purchase of village land for the ODOT bridge repair project.
The land acquisition would be for parcel 004 and the village would receive $3,690.00. Council moved to approve this offer.
Next, it was stated that Lincoln Frey applied for a grant on behalf of the county for pressure loggers.
If the grant is approved, one will be installed in Metamora which allows them to detect leaks faster and determine if a buildup pipe needs to be cleared out.
The mayor’s report was discussed next before council moved to adjourn at 8:42 p.m.