(PHOTO BY JESSE DAVIS / THE VILLAGE REPORTER)
GETTING THE YEAR GOING … The Delta Village Council and village officials discuss village business during the year’s first council meeting Monday evening. It was the first full meeting for new Village Administrator Christopher Frazer and new Police Chief Samuel Chappell.
By: Jesse Davis
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
jesse@thevillagereporter.com
Delta Village Council members debated the benefits of department heads having their own credit cards during their meeting Monday evening.
Previous village policy authorized a card only for the village administrator, use of which had to be requested by department heads, until the council voted several months ago to allow several more cards for heads of departments such as police, streets, the park department, and the water plant.
“I don’t like them at all,” Councilwoman Lynn Frank said. Frank was concerned about the vagaries of the credit card statements potentially hiding fraud, as they did not include the items purchased, merely vendors such as Amazon and Home Depot. “I’m more comfortable with not having credit cards, period,” she said.
Assistant Finance Director Marlena Allwood said all departments order their own supplies separately and use their cards for the purchases.
Councilman Robert Shirer floated the idea of locking all the cards in the vault when not in use, but other members said that would create the same issue as only having one card – with the card potentially not being available when needed for an emergency on the weekend.
Allwood and Law Director Kevin Heban reported there is currently no specific credit card policy for village employees, only basic regulations on what types of purchases are disallowed, such as alcohol. Heban agreed to draft a policy, which the council can vote to have inserted in the village policy manual.
VILLAGE ADMINISTRATOR UPDATES
Christopher Frazer, the new permanent village administrator, provided several updates, including his decision to use the smaller office space previously used by Interim Village Administrator Edward Ciecka, leaving the normal administrator office space open and available for the village to lease.
Frazer reported on a meeting he had with the project engineer and a representative for the Love’s Travel Station, set to be constructed this year on the northwest corner of the intersection of State Route 109 and County Road H.
He said they plan to break ground in the spring and are hoping to complete construction by the end of the year.
Frazer also gave an update on the remediation of the Bunting Bearing property, for which the state has awarded $1.5 million through the Fulton County Land Bank for the demolition of buildings and remediation to residential standards.
According to Frazer, the funds were set to be released pending a final 15-day public comment period, with the council meeting falling on the 14th day.
POLICE DEPARTMENT UPDATES
New Police Chief Samuel Chappell updated the council on his efforts since taking the position, including an ongoing inventory of all department property, which he said had not been done previously.
Chappell said the goal is to know what they have and where it is located for future use while coming up with a list of unused or unnecessary equipment to share with other departments as needed or sell.
Councilman Chad Johnson brought up his concern about the police department building being “severely underlit” on the outside.
Chappell shared the concern, saying that he was looking into lighting improvements as well as moving the direct line emergency phone outside the station to the inside, where people in need wouldn’t be stuck out in the elements while waiting for assistance.
Chappell said he made contact with the organizers of the upcoming Yeti 10-Miler running event, which, despite starting at Delta Middle School, the police department has never been involved with.
This year, one officer and one cruiser will assist with traffic control alongside the two county sheriff’s deputies and their cruisers.
The department will also be assisting with parking planning for future wrestling events at the high school after a challenging parking situation at an event last month.
OTHER BUSINESS
The council voted to name Councilman Johnson as vice mayor for 2025. Johnson also served in the role during 2024.
The council approved a contract with Shank Concrete to crush the concrete left over from the pool demolition – estimated to be more than 3,000 tons – at a cost of $28,000, to be paid with the remaining $14,000 in the pool fund as well as $14,000 from the street department fund.
The crushed concrete will be used to repair alleys in the village and will be considered for use in park paths.
After previously expanding the maximum number of park board members to seven, the council voted to approve Lori Holly and Steve Inkrott as new members.
The pair were appointed to represent the youth soccer and youth flag football leagues, respectively, after the organizations reached out to the village about wanting representation on the board. One seat on the board remains unfilled.
The council approved the reappointment of Andy Welch to the Planning Commission. Welch was previously on the commission, with his term expiring December 31, 2024.
The council approved the offering of leases to a local Girl Scouts organization and the Delta Youth Soccer Association for use of space in Memorial Hall for regular meetings. The leases are for liability purposes only and do not include any cost.
The council approved its regular meeting dates for 2024. The council ended regular business by going into an executive session to have a conference with the law director regarding pending or imminent litigation. No action was expected as a result of the session.
The next regular meeting of the Delta Village Council will be held at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, January 21, 2025, at 401 Main Street in Delta.
