PHOTO BY JOHN FRYMAN/ THE VILLAGE REPORTER
FAREWELL … Pioneer Village Council member, Ben Fiser (left) was recognized with a plaque from Mayor Edward Kidston (right) for his service to council. It was the final council meeting for Fiser, who is moving out of the area.
By: John Fryman
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
john@thevillagereporter.com
Pioneer Village Council discussed a resolution to place a five-mill safety levy at its meeting on Monday, December 8.
Council members in attendance were Trevor West, Ben Fiser, Joseph Nickloy, Dean Frisbie, Bryan Gendron, and Alan Fiser.
The Pledge of Allegiance was recited, followed by a prayer from Pastor Craig Bard of Pioneer Community Church. Council then approved meeting minutes from November 10 (regular) and November 24 (special), the November financial report, and payment of bills.
Mayor Edward Kidston presented a resolution declaring the necessity for a five-mill safety levy, requesting the Williams County Auditor to certify the total current tax valuation of the subdivision and the dollar amount of revenue to be generated pursuant to Ohio Revised Code Section 5703.03 (B).
“This is to request the auditor to tell you what the five-mill levy would generate,” said village solicitor Tom Thompson. “Passing this doesn’t put it on the ballot.
“Once you get the certificate back from the auditor, they will tell you how much money it would generate, and it will be a separate ordinance to move forward with the levy. That would be something to discuss next month.”
Kidston said the five-mill levy would generate $187,355.00 per year, which would go towards the police and fire departments.
He also pointed out that the village taxpayers have spent $512,000 for the fire department and $451,000 for the police department already this year.
Council member Dean Frisbie suggested the proposed levy should be divided into a two-mill fire levy and a three-mill police levy.
Thompson told council members they’re now facing a time crunch should they place the levy request on the May ballot.
“If you want to make the May ballot, you have to have everything done in early February,” said the village solicitor.
“It will take one evolution here for the auditor to get the numbers back. If you want to change things next month, you’ll be running a little tight and having special meetings.”
Kidston mentioned that if the safety levy is placed on the May ballot, it could go up against the North Central Local School District levy. He told the council that maybe the village can wait until the November general election.
“We can go forward with this, and we already got the numbers,” said Kidston. “I think we should seriously think about not doing the May ballot just because we got to get the school levy passed.”
Thompson said if the village decided to place the levy issue on the November ballot, there are really no consequences because the levy wouldn’t start collecting until 2027.
Village residents will be seeing their monthly water rates go up from $35 to $40 per month as the council approved the ordinance. It’s the first rate increase since 2019 and the lowest in the county.
Residents will also see a five-dollar increase in wastewater collection and treatment services after council approval.
Council approved an ordinance for assessments on improvements to Cedar Street and East Dearborn Street.
Both projects have been completed. Residents have the option of either paying their assessments in full or on their tax bill.
Fire Chief Rodger Swank updated the council on the Volunteer Fire Fighters Dependency Fund, in which the online application process must be completed by January.
Swank requested two council members, Dean Frisbie and Bryan Gendron, to serve as legislative representatives on the Dependency Fund board, along with himself and village resident Connie Salsbury.
Village administrator Anthony Burnett updated the council on the electric substation project, in which the steel has arrived, and the transformers that the village had purchased three years ago have been moved. He added that the contractors are running on schedule and looking toward a June completion date.
Burnett presented the yearly agreement with Thompson Funeral Home for indigent services for any village resident at $1,000 per case. The contract was approved.
Council, upon Burnett’s recommendations, approved a contract with Intrust Solutions for 2026, not to exceed $10,000 for engineering services.
An agreement with On Target Engineering for the design and engineering of South Elm Street and one block of Church Street construction was approved for $16,500 for engineering services.
The project, which is estimated at $1,156,000.00 and includes a 10 percent ongoing contingency, is now on the state-level funding process taking place in March.
The village will then have Turnkey Engineering to get the project out for bids following funding approval.
“We received a $500,000 grant from the government and a $500,000 zero-interest loan to be paid over 20 years,” said Kidston.
“Technically, we are able to make this improvement, but only about $100,000 in local money. I would suggest that we move forward with the engineering and get it going.”
Burnett made a recommendation for the council to approve the sale of a village fire truck, and the motion passed by a 6-0 vote.
Council approved an agreement with Software Solutions for the upgrading of the village’s software system. It will cost $40,000, which will cover the next five years and will also include a set-up fee. After five years, the cost per year will drop to between $18,000 – $25,000.
“It’s not a five-year contract, but it’s because the set-up cost could be as much as $80,000 for just the set-up at a one-time cost,” said Village Fiscal Officer Nikki Mittelstaedt.
“They said we could spread that however long as we want, interest-free. I just chose the five-year plan. We have already put $40,000 in next year’s budget. With that, we were still under budget in that department.”
In other action, the council approved the following:
-Appropriations for 2025 and permanent appropriations for 2026.
-Modified the electric rates for the village.
-Designated zones of annexed territory on North State Street and updated the official zoning map of the village.
-Authorization to accept bids for the Pioneer Electrical Systems project.
-Accepted donations from the Pioneer American Legion ($18,160.00) and 20/20 Custom Plastics ($350.00).
-A resolution naming the Pioneer Solar Field, the Edward Kidston Generation Station.
-A resolution naming the electric substation in the village’s North Industrial Park, the Kexon Substation.
Kidston thanked the village street department for their effort in snow removal during the recent Thanksgiving weekend snowstorm.
It was also the final council meeting for Ben Fiser, who is stepping down after serving for the past four years. He is moving from the area.
“It’s been a pleasure working with all of you over the course of the years,” said Ben Fiser. “Life changed things, I got married and will be moving out of town.
“It’s been a privilege to serve the residents of Pioneer and try to do the best I could for them. I just want to thank you for working with you.”
Kidston presented Fiser with a plaque for his service to the village council.
Council then adjourned the meeting at 8:30 p.m.