EMS LEVY BENEFITS … Jesse Brumbaugh, representing the Williams County EMS Levy Committee, detailed how beneficial the EMS levy that will be seen on the November ballot will be to all citizens of Williams County.
By: Anna Wozniak
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
The West Unity Village Council met on July 13, 2023 at 7:30 p.m. During this meeting, two pieces of legislation and one motion were passed.
The meeting began with the pledge of allegiance and approval of the minutes from the June 8, 2023 session and the bills as presented.
Then the council greeted Jesse Brumbaugh, representing the Williams County EMS Levy Committee.
Brumbaugh detailed how beneficial this levy would be to the municipalities of Williams County, expressing that this is one of the only counties in Ohio that has yet to fund their EMS services with a levy.
EMS was started in 1979 and has yet to see direct taxpayer funds. Historically, EMS supported itself through transfer profits from transfer requests.
This low amount of funding has resulted in a lack of ambulances for covering Williams County, creating high response times in many rural communities.
Not only will this levy ensure that response times to these communities will be halved, with lifesaving, time sensitive actions being able to be made twice as fast, it also will allow for all county residents to receive no bill after insurance.
Brumbaugh detailed how this levy will serve as county residents “paying” for EMS services, resulting in a “soft billing” process that will see no funds collected from county residents after insurance is invoiced.
Brumbaugh then urged council to spread the word of the benefits this levy will provide if adopted after the November election, as well as to submit any questions about it to his team so that everyone can be informed as to what this entails.
Council thanked him for his time and then passed a resolution authorizing their tax levy amounts and rates, sending them to the county auditor.
Next passed was an ordinance amending the “sidewalk reimbursement policy” in order to account for the frequent fluctuation in concrete prices.
The administrator, police, mayor, and clerk reports were accepted as presented. Part of the administrator’s report included the details of a lot on Lynn Street that used to be in three separate lots that is currently being purchased by the Williams County Port Authority (WCPA).
The WCPA asked that council approve splitting the lot back into the original three, which resulted in a motion to approve this separation that was unanimously carried by council.
The purchase of an extra streetlight in front of the park was approved, giving cause to discussion around purchasing additional holiday decorations for said light.
Then discussed were the issues met this year with large fireworks being shot off within village limits. Council is looking at outlawing fireworks due to damages caused by private parties the last two July’s, emphasis being placed on how rowdy the celebrations were this year, with multiple claims of property damage being reported.
With houses being so close together within the village limits, a code change may soon be seen that heavily restricts West Unity firework activities.
The West Unity Village Council adjourned their meeting at 9:21 p.m., with the next one scheduled for Thursday, August 10, 2023, at 7:30 p.m.
Anna can be reached at anna@thevillagereporter.com
