PHOTO BY JACOB KESSLER / THE VILLAGE REPORTER
YARD SIGN … A yard sign was presented to council by Fayette CDC’s Mat Johnson. Pictured are Mat Johnson, Katie Colegrove, Brenda Shoemaker, Mayor Dave Borer, Suzette Boesger, Brittany Theis, and Kimberlee Priestap.
By: Jacob Kessler
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
The Fayette Village Council held their meeting on Wednesday, June 26th. The meeting began at 6:01 p.m. with a prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance.
Council first moved to approve the current agenda with additions as well as minutes from the previous meeting held on June 12th, Public Works Committee meeting held on June 19th, and Finance Committee meeting held on June 19th.
The introduction of visitors took place next with CDC’s Mat Johnson speaking to council about their new yard sign initiative.
The CDC has purchased new yard signs that they would like people to place out in their front yards. The signs say, “Fayette Proud” and are made up with the Fayette school colors.
Signs were given to members of council, the mayor, and the village administrator. Johnson stated they hope having the signs in their yards, along with word of mouth, will help spread the word and get more people to want the signs. Signs will currently be available at the village office and by asking a member of the Fayette CDC.
The meeting then moved on to the mayor’s report section, with the following items being discussed. Mayor Borer stated that council member Brittany Theis did a great job in his absence at the last meeting.
The farmers market will be running every Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. and will continue through the end of September, except for during Bull Thistle which will be held on August 3rd.
The men’s league softball games will be played every Friday night at 6:00 p.m. and the Summer Fest will be held that Friday, June 28th during the softball game.
The library will be holding a crochet and knit night on July 2nd at 6:00 p.m. The Fayette CDC will be holding a business workshop series on July 9th from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the Opera House.
Various speakers will be coming out for the event. The splash pad is currently open and is available for people to enjoy.
The administrator’s report came next with the following items being discussed. Bryan Excavating started installing services to residents on West Main Street during the week. They are making their way east and will be hooking up residents as they go.
They will continue their work and will utilize the temporary stop lights until they reach the end of East Main Street. The contractor has also been fitting and grass seeding resident areas affected by construction in locations all over the village.
Continuing, for phase two of the project, it was stated that Fayette had applied for $3,946,500 in grant money from the Ohio Department of Development.
This money would have been used for a new water tower. Unfortunately, notification was sent that the grant opportunity was not awarded to Fayette.
It was further stated that additional funding opportunities will have to be looked at for the water tower, but that the current tower will have to be utilized until then.
The conversation then shifted to employee Deanna Kuebeck. It was stated by the administrator that she has been working full-time for two weeks now as Mat Johnson’s replacement and that she is doing an amazing job, despite the loss of a large amount of knowledge by Johnson’s departure.
“I appreciate all she has done in this short amount of time, and I see her as a great asset to the village.” It was further stated that she and the administrator will be working to add the community calendar into the mailed water bills.
Moving forward, the first bench for the splash pad has been ordered. This bench was selected specifically for the splash pad and will be one way the village is looking forward to improving that area of the park system.
Lastly, public works employees had to respond to a water main break, in the old system, near the corner of S. Maple Street earlier that morning. The break was fixed within only a few hours, and crews moved on to other projects. DPW crews were then thanked for the work they do.
The village fiscal officer’s report then followed, with the first item discussed being a change to the bill list.
Next, VFO Sauerlender stated she had attended an annual meeting for RITA, the organization contracted by Fayette for tax purposes. She informed the council that votes took place for the organization’s leadership and that discussions took place regarding possible future changes that may be in the works.
One of those possible changes revolves around E-Invoices and the other involves Ifile Pro.
Next, the VFO discussed changes to the upcoming committee meetings, with the meeting dates being changed to Monday, July 1st. A special council meeting will also be held on that date at 6:00 p.m. with township trustees regarding the cemetery.
Lastly, council was informed that Mat Johnson holds the licensures required for mosquito/herbicide/pesticide spraying.
According to the Sauerlender, Johnson has agreed to allow the village to operate with his license. Discussion took place regarding how much compensation to give, with the options being $200 for one license, or $400 for the two. It was decided to offer compensation for both licenses at $400.00.
Next, council moved to pay the bills in the amount of $91,328.32 before moving on to approve the following legislative actions.
The second reading of Ordinance 2024-07 to amend the income tax reciprocity for the village. The second reading of Resolution 2024-03 declaring the necessity of an election on the question of approving the passage of an ordinance in order to provide for an increase of .025% in the existing income tax, with said increase to provide funds for police operations.
The third reading of Ordinance 2024-06 for appropriation modifications. Next, approval was given for the following items. A motion to approve payment for Bryan Excavating pay request #8 in the amount of $507,301.14 ($5,522.60 of which is for lead service line replacement.
A motion to approve change order #3 from Bryan Excavating. A motion to pay Mat Johnson $400 for use of his mosquito/herbicide/pesticide license, and to be effective immediately.
Next, council moved to enter into executive session at 6:37 to discuss employee compensation. Council returned at 6:44 p.m. and moved to transfer 100 hours of sick time for the new utility billing clerk Deanna Kuebeck.
With no further items to attend to, the meeting was adjourned at 6:45 p.m. The next regular meeting will take place on July 10th.
