City Council honors outgoing members

DAVE MOSIER/independent editor

Van Wert City Council recognized Council President Gary Corcoran and three outgoing councilmen for their service during its last regularly scheduled meeting of the year.

Corcoran, a 12-year veteran of City Council who decided not to seek re-election this past year, was honored with a resolution recognizing his service, as well as testimonials from Mayor Don Farmer and former mayor Louis Ehmer.

Also honored with resolutions were Councilman At-Large Jeff Agler, the only Democrat on Council; Third Ward Councilman Stuart Jewett and Fourth Ward Councilman Pete Weir.

Corcoran also announced that new Council members would be sworn into office at 3 p.m. Monday, December 30, in Van Wert Municipal Court.

Moreover, although it was their Council accomplishments that were recognized Monday, all three outgoing Councilmen were more disappointed that a couple of pet projects weren’t completed during their terms in office.

Both Agler and Jewett expressed disappointment that they were not able to finalize work on a memorandum of agreement that would have added the former Washington Elementary School site to the city’s park responsibilities.

“I’m real disappointed,” said Jeff Agler, chair of the Properties and Equipment Committee that, along with the Parks and Recreation Committee, had been working on a plan to have the city take responsibility for the site. Members of Van Wert Youth Football have brought a proposal to Council seeking to use the property as a permanent site for Youth Football games.

Mayor Farmer threw a monkey wrench into Agler and Jewett’s plans by announcing Monday that there are two as-yet unidentified parties working with Van Wert City Schools to take over the former school property.

The mayor said having those organizations take over the property would be better fiscally than having the city do so, but also promised Youth Football representatives that their organization would still be part of any agreement made with Van Wert City Schools.

Corcoran kept the school property issue in committee for further discussion in 2014.

Weir also talked about one of his pet projects: the condition of sidewalks within the city, and also provided a comprehensive update to a 2001 report on the condition of streets within the city. Weir noted that 30 of the city’s current streets were not included in the 2001 report, largely because they were not created then, but did admit that the rating system used was more subjective than objective.

Weir said the reason for the report was to spur incoming councilmen to tour their wards and look at the condition of streets located in the wards.

Also Monday, Mayor Farmer noted that he has signed an agreement allowing Van Wert Municipal Court to purchase the former First Financial Bank’s main office on East Main Street to use as a court facility. The current court building, which was a former city post office, has some problems that Judge Jill Leatherman said make it necessary to seek a new location.

City Auditor Martha Balyeat also gave her blessings to a plan to have the city finance the $1.5 million bond issue that would be needed to finance the purchase and needed renovations.

“I don’t see a reason not to do it,” Balyeat said of the city’s investing in the bond issue.

The city auditor said the city normally has between $3 million and $5 million in investments outstanding at any one time, while $1.5 million currently invested will come due in January. She added that the city is currently getting less than 1 percent in interest on its investments, and noted that investing in the Municipal Court bond issue would likely have an interest rate of more than 4 percent.

Safety-Service Director Jay Fleming also reported that the new traffic light at the intersection of Shannon Street and Fox Road was now in operation, and First Ward Councilman John Marshall, who also chairs the Health Serviced and Safety Committee, noted that more than 400 code violations were addressed in 2013.

Council also took care of a number of financial housekeeping items during its last meeting of the year, approving supplemental appropriations and transfers needed to balance the city’s books for the year.

A public hearing will also be held at 6 p.m. Friday, December 27, to discuss a request to rezone 811 and 817 N. Washington St., and 103 Bonnewitz Ave. from R-2 (medium density residential) to B-3 (highway and general business). The hearing will be held in Council Chambers on the second floor of the Municipal Building, 515 E. Main St.