[0:02] [music]
[0:10] [music]
[0:14] service committee.
>> Service committee called to order at
[0:19] 5:00 pm. Members present Chris Maritz
chair Cody Scott Taylor Spiegel
[0:24] [clears throat] Robert Taylor. First up,
I do want to apologize for having this
[0:28] special meeting because
uh we're trying to do things a little
[0:31] different up here and I got messages
across to how we wanted to get it done.
[0:37] So, that's why we're in this meeting
tonight to try to fix
[0:41] my mistakes that I screwed up on and I
apologize for that. Uh solid waste waste
[0:46] rates are up first and I'm going to do a
public participation on each one of
[0:50] these starting out before we ask for
legislation.
[0:57] » Greg White 1125 Hill Chris Drive. So, I
thought we were going to wait on until
[1:04] we got more information
about how we're going to charge people
[1:08] for the trash rates until the
administration brought forth more
[1:12] information about how much of these
trucks are going to cost us.
[1:15] » I think that's a different that's a
different one.
[1:17] » Okay. But the the solid waste or we
going to we going to change
[1:20] » solid waste rates first.
>> Okay. Okay. So, uh let me ask you this.
[1:24] So, are we going to change the section
that I think needs to be changed on
[1:28] cubic yard dumping? Are we going to
change that today or we just
[1:33] » That is not That is not on the on the
other
[1:35] » That's not on the agenda either today.
>> Wow. Okay. Because I mean it was just
[1:40] vague. It didn't specifically state what
was, you know, on the thing. So, all
[1:45] right. Thank you.
>> Yep.
[1:49] » Any more public participation? I can't
even say that today. I'm so damn tired.
[1:52] [laughter]
Without seeing any more public
[1:56] participation, I would like to uh see if
I can get a motion to
[2:02] amend section 999, the rate tables of
the BCO, and increase the solid waste
[2:09] rates by $1 per month, both residential
and commercial
[2:16] accounts as an emergency.
[2:21] Is that amount right?
>> I thought we were going I thought we
[2:25] were going to $2. I thought we were
going to
[2:28] » I thought it was just one.
>> It's just $1.
[2:30] » $2 was discussed, but it ended up being
$1.
[2:34] » Did you look at that chart?
>> Yeah, I know. I understand the chart,
[2:37] but I emailed Dylan
about because I asked a question during
[2:42] that last meeting.
>> Solid waste and storm mix.
[2:47] » Okay.
>> Yeah, storm sewer is different.
[2:48] » Gotcha. I apologize. Guys, I did that
last time, too, didn't I?
[2:51] » Yeah.
>> It's all right. All right.
[2:53] » That's okay.
>> I'll just All right.
[2:55] » Starts with an S. I make a motion to uh
to amend section 9999.
[3:01] » Terry Speels uh first. Do I get a
second?
[3:05] » So moved.
>> Rob Taylor second. All in favor?
[3:10] » I.
>> Motion passes.
[3:16] » Up next is Storm Rider. That is what
we're talking about, right?
[3:19] » Uh, also again, I want to do public
participation first. Anybody want public
[3:23] participation on that?
>> Do we know why we're raising these
[3:26] rates?
>> Yes, we do. It was discussed in
[3:29] Thursday's meeting. Uh, Tommy, you want
to go through that? You probably know it
[3:32] better than I do as far as why we're
raising these rates after 23 years.
[3:37] » I mean, it seems like our bill goes up
every month. I mean, it's ridiculous.
[3:42] So, why? It's
crazy. And I can take a stab it if you
[3:47] want to, but you probably know it better
than I do why why it happened.
[3:56] Thomas, our safety director. Um, the
reason we're raising the rates is the we
[4:00] have not raised these rates in 23 years
for the storm water. They've gone from
[4:05] two or $4 to $6 just for the storm
water. And then there's going to be an
[4:12] additional 60 cents next year.
in order to get a loan, in order to do
[4:18] what we need to do for storm water
separation on the south end of town.
[4:23] It's the reason we're raising these
rates
[4:26] » and big culvert going in and it's going
to separate almost 480
[4:32] um acres of land of water separation
>> for somebody else or what?
[4:39] » No, that's our it's the cities of
Biruses. Yeah, the EPA is enforcing and
[4:44] the
>> EPA is enforcing this. Yeah, exactly.
[4:48] So,
>> they don't give loans, huh?
[4:50] » That is that is with the loan. That's
the only reason we can get a loan is
[4:53] with with that increase.
>> Again, this is 23 years kicking a can
[5:00] down the road.
>> Y
[5:03] » now we're at where we're at now.
>> We all got to, you know, suffer more. We
[5:08] should have been doing this all alone
for 23 years.
[5:13] With that being said,
like see if I can get a motion to
[5:19] » Can I read this email real quick?
>> Yeah, go ahead.
[5:21] » So, I had asked the question to Dylan in
the last meeting because I was obviously
[5:26] confused about I was confusing storm
water rates and trash rates and
[5:30] everything. So, he I emailed him this
week and he got back with me.
[5:35] Um, and I because [clears throat] the
numbers didn't add up to me as far as
[5:39] percentage in that letter that was
attached to the top of that packet. Uh,
[5:43] the percentage was 25% just to catch up
with inflation and 35%
[5:50] to keep us on track with the with the
loan that we're going to get. We can go
[5:55] back and look at the I'm telling you 25%
35% 60%.
[6:00] Every time I do it, I've done it three
times now.
[6:03] So, I emailed Dylan about
[clears throat] that and here's the
[6:06] answer I got. All to say yes, a larger
increase up to 75% could easily be
[6:12] justified with those numbers. But we
felt for the time being that the
[6:17] requested increase 50% immediately, 10%
in 2027, and 3% every year for the
[6:25] inflation adjustment were adequate based
on the on the projects we have planned.
[6:32] And since we are not proposing the 75%
increase on a project of this magnitude,
[6:37] which is a 30-year loan project,
we will just need to save the funds for
[6:44] longer to make the project viable.
[6:49] So my question is
does anyone have any faith in any
[6:57] government entity regardless of who's in
charge of it saving that money?
[7:03] So are we going to find ourselves in
this situation
[7:07] in 10 or 15 years that that money we
supposed to have been saving on that 50%
[7:12] increase plus the 10% plus the 3% 3% 3%
Robert, that that storm water fee goes
[7:20] into a special fund. Nobody can ever
touch that. It can't go to general fund.
[7:24] It can't go to the sewage fund. It
cannot go to the water fund. It has to
[7:28] stay right there in that fund and be
used.
[7:29] » No, I I understand
either.
[7:32] » They can't get No,
>> they can't. Nobody touches that.
[7:34] » Yeah, I understand they're separate
funds.
[7:40] But
I I guess my question is is it is this
[7:45] is this incremental increase enough?
[7:50] » Not that I want to raise it any higher.
I'm just wondering if we're not going to
[7:54] have to go through this whole rigo and
and
[7:56] » hopefully we don't have four more years
like we did the past four years to where
[8:00] interest rates went crazy. Now we're
down to a decent interest rate, right?
[8:04] Hopefully we don't get anything like
that again to where it could kick us in
[8:07] the rear end and we have to do it. But
>> as long as it straight stay where
[8:10] they're at now, this should be
>> I think so.
[8:13] » Okay.
>> It should be enough.
[8:14] » All right.
>> As long as we don't get that problem
[8:16] again. If that h if that happens again,
>> right,
[8:19] » it's going to be up to next
administration or this administration
[8:22] whenever it happens,
>> right?
[8:23] » To um have to look into
>> maybe changing that again. Hopefully, we
[8:28] won't have to, but
>> the way it looks at least next for the
[8:31] next three years anyway,
>> right,
[8:32] » we're going to have good interest rates.
>> Okay. Thank you. Anything else from
[8:38] anybody?
Seeing that, I'd like to um
[8:43] see if I can get a motion to amend BC BC
927-05
[8:52] by increasing storm water rates 50%
which is two bucks for the remainder of
[8:58] the calendar year for 2026,
10% for calendar year 2027, and then an
[9:05] additional increase of 3% each year
after that. as an emergency.
[9:12] » So move.
>> Second.
[9:15] » Terry Spagle first.
Rob Taylor second.
[9:21] All in favor?
>> I
[9:24] » I motion passes
[9:36] onto a long-term contract.
[9:41] But with uh I don't know why I have such
trouble with this name.
[9:44] » Arcadus.
>> Arcadus. I always want to put Y in it
[9:46] when I say it.
>> Long-term control plan.
[9:48] » Long-term control plan. Yes. Any public
participation on this one?
[9:51] » Man, I do.
>> Greg Y 1125 Hillrest Drive. I mean, I
[9:58] understand we got to do this. Uh I'm
going back on the thing, too. Is where's
[10:02] the money coming from this back? Let's
go back to the money situation on this.
[10:07] Okay, we were told that when we paid for
the new water treatment plant, whatever
[10:13] those increases would be, that money
could not be touched.
[10:17] » Okay, plain simple. Okay, we we can't
touch it. It's been was said in council
[10:23] meetings. I went back to the tapes and
it's there. So, if anybody wants to say
[10:27] it's not there, bring it on.
>> But we just they just said it again
[10:31] about that one.
>> Yep. So, the thing is, I understand we
[10:35] got to do it, but the only thing is I
disagree with taking the money out of
[10:38] that fund to pay for that because that
was supposed to be used for the
[10:43] wastewater treatment plant. I mean,
>> are those not tied together.
[10:46] » They're tied together.
>> They're tied. But that's the thing.
[10:48] That's how they're getting around this.
They're tying it together.
[10:51] » We have to We have to do the
>> I understand.
[10:56] » But I'm going back on what was said when
we everybody agreed to this.
[11:01] » Okay. Now it's turned around to where
whatever they want to do with it now. So
[11:06] the their gentleman's agreement is like
has been brought up before doesn't mean
[11:10] a crap it means anymore with this
administration to me. Okay?
[11:15] » Because basically they can do no wrong.
They can do whatever they want to with
[11:19] our money. Raise raise rates do whatever
they want to without any
[11:25] anything to the taxpayers to say okay
enough's enough.
[11:29] » Well, but that's all I got to say.
Thanks.
[11:32] » Thank you, sir.
>> Um Tom, again, you probably hit on this
[11:37] better than I can, but I'll give it a
shot. When we started looking at the
[11:40] wastewater plant because it needed fix
again, EPA stepping in. This needs done.
[11:46] And that was with the government EPA at
that time.
[11:49] » That was the US EPA.
>> US EPA, excuse me, US EPA at that time.
[11:54] » And then down the road, state got
involved. the state wanted to come in
[11:58] and come over and take over that part of
it which we really wanted to do. It
[12:03] gives us better options
down the road. Uh at that time we
[12:08] thought we only needed to do the
wastewater plant. This was not part of
[12:13] the original agreement we were going to
do with the company was going to do the
[12:16] wastewater plant.
>> All the CSOS.
[12:18] » Yeah. All
>> but that was the plan all along though,
[12:21] right? to get that done too,
>> but it wasn't it wasn't involved in the
[12:25] original
>> wastewater.
[12:27] » Yeah.
>> No
[12:29] » re ref reabbing of the wastewater plant.
>> This needs to be part of it and
[12:33] shouldn't be part of it.
>> Yeah. The long-term control plan that
[12:35] right EPA requires us to do is the is
getting the uh the storm water out of
[12:41] the system
>> and doesn't go to have the CSOS.
[12:45] » It doesn't go to Upper Suski anymore. It
>> doesn't doesn't go into the river.
[12:49] That's right. Right.
>> Yeah.
[12:52] So, uh, long-term control plan is
something we've been working on,
[12:57] » and don't we need we need this these
flow meters to determine how big our new
[13:02] plant needs to be. Correct. Yeah,
>> that's what that was my
[13:06] » idea what's going on with it. Yes.
What's the flow? What's the high flow
[13:09] when it picks up,
>> right?
[13:10] » And
>> Terry's been in wastewater for number of
[13:14] years.
>> More years alive, probably. [laughter]
[13:19] I'm only 25.
>> It covers covers everything from if we
[13:22] if we just need to rebuild the
clarifiers we got, how many clarifiers
[13:25] we have to add to it. If the osmosis
system needs to be bigger, all that
[13:28] stuff's involved with this.
>> Osmosis out there.
[13:33] [snorts]
>> Yeah, it is. It's something
[13:37] that EPA requires you to do is that
long-term control plan. They don't want,
[13:41] you know, to continue it because they
don't want you to stop right now where
[13:44] you're at and [snorts]
build a new plant that's doing good.
[13:47] You're still going to have overflows.
That's what they don't want, right?
[13:50] » They want us to get down to uh I think
it's 10 in it
[13:53] » overflows. Three, four years now. Wow.
>> Wow.
[13:57] » On each
>> total. Total.
[14:01] » How you going to get 17 down to to any?
>> You're not going to get it down to that.
[14:06] » That's what they want.
>> 17's a major one. If nobody knows, it's
[14:11] the Buffalo. starts up with the
fairgrounds, comes right under here,
[14:15] goes out on Warren Street. It's the
buffalo. It's a It's a 40 inch pipe, and
[14:22] when it rains, the black stuff comes out
of it because I was under time in 15
[14:25] minutes.
>> They want to get rid of the first flush
[14:28] that they want to get rid of, don't
they?
[14:31] » Yeah.
>> That pipe need replaced.
[14:34] » No, can't replace it. Well, the
long-term control plan, what what
[14:39] originally it's going to do, I don't
know if it's still like this, was to
[14:42] turn that into a storm sewer and get
laterals on each side of that, but
[14:45] they're still planning on doing with the
with the buffalo.
[14:48] » Do you know?
>> Not yet.
[14:50] » Okay. That's way down the road.
>> We'll be gone by the time we get that
[14:55] done. Yeah. That's going to a big dis
disruption of the city. But that's the
[15:00] original plan because that
>> Yeah. But to get that down to four.
[15:08] Okay.
But we have to have it. So
[15:11] » Mhm.
>> And I can't seem possibly trying to get
[15:13] us down lower than four. That's just
>> that's a crazy amount anyway to get down
[15:17] to.
>> Uh
[15:19] » that's a crazy amount to get down in.
Four is like
[15:21] » is that four for each one for four
period?
[15:24] » Period. There used to be was 10, was it?
Why did they drop it so low?
[15:33] » Got to save the planet, bud.
[15:38] » Yeah, we we to the water plant also know
the water plan had to be done.
[15:43] Okay, I'm going to entertain to make a
get a motion to authorize and direct
[15:48] save safety service director to enter
into a contract with Arcadus
[15:54] to
[15:57] administer long-term control plan again
as an emergency.
[16:02] » So moved.
>> Rob Taylor first,
[16:07] Cody Scott second. All in favor?
>> I.
[16:10] » All opposed?
Oh, sorry. Sorry. I All opposed.
[16:16] Motion passes.
Okay. Contract
[16:22] lease and servicing uh center NC L
government
[16:29] Capital.
Any public participation on that one?
[16:33] » Yeah,
I know what that was.
[16:36] » Greg Y 1125 Hill Crest Drive. Now I can
talk about this. Yes, sir. Okay. So, we
[16:42] were just told Thursday night that there
we were going to get more information
[16:46] about this.
>> Yes, you were.
[16:48] » And all of a sudden now it's on the
agenda tonight for emergency.
[16:53] Okay. And we haven't even been able to
voice our opinions or even talk about
[16:57] this or even know what the hell's going
on. Excuse me. I'm sorry about that. But
[17:01] what the heck's going on? Okay. Once
again,
[17:06] we're being told certain things and all
of a sudden then the lies come out. what
[17:11] I believe to be true is nothing but lies
coming out about stuff. Okay, why not be
[17:15] open and transparent and bring
everything to the table instead of
[17:19] hiding all this crap. Okay, this is
where our government is not being
[17:24] transparent and not being effective.
Okay. So to me this contract you got
[17:31] this committee n xnay it right now till
we get more information till citizens
[17:36] can understand this better to where you
guys can understand this because matter
[17:41] of fact as brought up before about when
you guys go into executive session
[17:45] you're given 10 minutes with something
and then have to make a rash decision.
[17:50] This doesn't have to be a rash decision.
This this needs to be ironed out, talked
[17:57] about, and this administration needs to
be told that the citizens are pissed off
[18:02] about this when they keep doing crap
like this.
[18:05] » Well, I I can't speak for every
individual citizen. I'll speak as an
[18:11] elected official. This this should not
have been thrown on this agenda as an
[18:15] emergency, especially given what Mr.
White is correct in saying. We were told
[18:21] this was not
urgent and we do need more information
[18:25] and I think the proper way to go about
this to hold a town hall and get the
[18:29] public's input because this this is not
the only option available to us. Buying
[18:35] new garbage trucks is not the only
option. There are other options we can
[18:39] do to save money as a city and those
those options should at least be part of
[18:45] the conversation.
And the fact that you guys did try to
[18:50] throw this in here as an emergency after
telling us this was not urgent and we
[18:54] would get more information. I don't I
don't really like that.
[18:58] So I I don't know and I don't know why
we had to do that. I don't know why you
[19:02] guys did that.
>> All right. Thank you.
[19:04] » Very valid points.
>> Any other public participation?
[19:09] » Ken Law 625 South Spring Street. to go
along with this vein of uh conversation.
[19:15] Everything that has been passed so far
tonight is the same thing there. There's
[19:19] no emergency. What what tell me why it
was an emergency for anything that we
[19:24] that you guys legislated tonight.
>> We need to get this uh these flow meters
[19:28] going. We need to we need to get going
on storm water control. We really need
[19:33] » How long have you been aware of it?
Well, I mean, I've had I've heard this
[19:39] conversation six, eight months ago, but
not as an elected official,
[19:43] » but it was about six or eight months ago
when when the state started coming in
[19:47] state started coming in. And
>> our our process is three readings over 6
[19:52] week period, right?
>> Makes law uh four weeks later. So,
[19:56] you're talking less than 3 months. But
they said that uh excuse me that the uh
[20:02] uh the water testing or the um flow
monitoring is wants to be done in March
[20:07] when when the flow is the highest when
you get the most flow through your
[20:10] sewers at the time of the year.
>> Did we not?
[20:13] » Did we not know that a year ago?
>> Well,
[20:16] March is high tide.
>> We had different counsel
[20:20] going on time.
>> Greg's point is well t you know taken
[20:22] here that [snorts] it doesn't smell
good. Oh, no. They're smell good. But
[20:26] » this every every other every other thing
that gets passed here is an emergency.
[20:30] And that's because of poor planning, not
because it's an emergency because nobody
[20:34] had nobody woke up 3 months ago and
said, "You we got to do something about
[20:37] this." And
>> well, also, uh, US EPA was and Ohio EPA
[20:41] was in a in a tugof-war. Who's going to
run this? And now now Ohio EPA decided
[20:47] they're going to within the last I don't
know four months, 3 months, something
[20:51] like that. Let's just say four months.
I'm not sure if they even got it yet.
[20:55] » Why? Why did we wait four months to to
get off the cracker on this thing?
[20:58] » You'd have to ask the previous council
members.
[21:00] » Well, no.
First of January, 1st of January, we got
[21:04] we got council right here, right?
>> You know, if if
[21:08] » there was a problem with the old
administration, which is fine. Okay.
[21:11] Come first of Jan, that's over with.
Okay. Good, bad, good, bad, or
[21:14] indifferent, it's over with.
>> Fair enough. I'll say this then. If we
[21:17] don't if we don't pass this as an
emergency and we miss this deadline now
[21:22] we're behind an entire year
>> cuz you can't do it again. We can't put
[21:26] these flow meters in the ground until
March.
[21:28] » Okay.
>> But are you learn anything? That's
[21:31] that's my question because I I don't I
don't care about storm water. Don't care
[21:34] about any of this stuff. Okay. It's the
process that I'm that I'm up here
[21:38] complaining about. Everything is a
freaking emergency and it's not. Okay.
[21:42] That's what's not right about this. And
you guys, the as a group, the whole the
[21:46] whole council does doesn't understand
that.
[21:48] » Well, actually, this council understands
it better than the last council does. I
[21:52] believe
>> that your records does show that. Look
[21:54] what you did just tonight.
>> Well, bam, bam, bam.
[21:56] » This is just to get it on council floor,
though.
[21:59] » Yeah.
>> They could go down on the council floor.
[22:01] » It can go down on council floor. Doesn't
that pass on?
[22:04] » This is just to get it there.
>> We're not We don't make the laws here.
[22:08] » Okay.
>> We take them to the council. It just
[22:10] goes you're saying up you're saying that
up. You can't you can't fingerpoint
[22:14] going to the direction. And I'm not
trying to be hateful.
[22:16] » That's what this this sends it up to
council.
[22:19] » You you guys you guys are asking a lot
of us. You're asking us to pay more
[22:22] money for this, more money for that,
more of this and that and then you jam
[22:25] these all these emergencies on us and
that doesn't that doesn't sit well.
[22:29] Okay. It just it just isn't it isn't
right.
[22:31] » Well, it doesn't sit well with any of us
either. None of us want to see this. And
[22:35] I don't think it was even two months ago
that we didn't know that the state was
[22:38] going to be No.
the one that we're going to go with with
[22:41] the with the EPA stuff. I don't believe
>> it's still not 100%.
[22:44] » It's still not 100%. So, we still don't
know if it's going to be USA or if it's
[22:48] going to be a state that's actually
controlling what we do.
[22:53] That's what sucks about all this. None
of this is fair for anybody. But we got
[22:57] we we're up here to make some of the
tough decisions we got to make.
[23:00] Unfortunately,
that's what you elected us for. And hate
[23:05] us or whatever. It's we're stuck with
it.
[23:13] any more public participation on this
one? In my opinion, I don't know about
[23:18] I'll ask you, Robert, do you think we
should table this particular one until
[23:20] we got more information?
>> Not only should we table it, I [snorts]
[23:23] think we need a motion to uh to
entertain other options. I don't I'm not
[23:29] convinced that buying
two new trucks, keeping two trucks and
[23:34] running trash ourselves is necessarily
the best option. It may very well turn
[23:39] out to be the best option, but I think
we need to entertain the other options
[23:46] and there are other options.
>> I don't have the I don't have the in
[23:49] front of me, but I don't I think without
checking that this is already on our
[23:53] agenda to do other options. If not, I
would like to
[23:58] have this put on there to look for other
options for
[24:03] » you refer the next.
>> Yeah, for this
[24:06] » for um
>> but
[24:08] » trash trucks are
>> in short. Yes, I agree with you uh chair
[24:11] that this should be tabled
>> Cody.
[24:14] » Yep.
>> I agree too. We're going to table this
[24:16] one for now.
[24:20] » Oh, I don't think it needs a first
second for table, does it? No,
[24:24] absolutely not.
>> This is going to be tabled for now.
[24:29] Citizens participation again for the
last time.
[24:33] » Seeing none, we're going to journ at
5:24.
[24:38] [music]
[24:44] [music]