Council set to meet in person again

FORT RECOVERY –– Village council has been meeting via Zoom the last two months to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Council will reconvene its regular in-person meetings beginning in February.

Mayor Dave Kaup proposed Monday it reconvene at Fort Recovery Town Hall in council chambers starting Feb 1. Council agreed, and Kaup noted the group will meet again via Zoom if anyone becomes sick or if otherwise necessary.

Also Monday, council members approved a resolution to authorize village administrator Randy Diller to apply for an Ohio Department of Transportation grant to provide funding toward Butler Street reconstruction in 2025.

The project will involve reconstructing the length of Butler Street (Ohio 119) within village limits. It will include a new water line, sidewalks, curbs and a new traffic light at Wayne Street. Diller hopes the department will fund a little more than $1 million toward the approximately $4 million project.

Both Diller and fiscal officer Roberta Staugler also mentioned they are looking into refinancing a United States Department of Agriculture loan from about seven years ago when the village separated combined sewers. The new agreement is part of a bill for the Ohio Water Department Authority to include refinancing options, Diller explained. At present, the village has a little more than $1 million left to pay on the loan. Staugler estimated it will be about 34 years until it’s completely paid at current rates.

Best case scenario, Diller said, the village could go from paying 3% interest to somewhere near 0.5% interest on the loan.

The program guidelines have not yet been released, but Diller and Staugler said they would share when more information becomes available.

While sharing updates, Staugler noted per the ordinance passed about four years ago, minimum water rates in the village have jumped from $41.50 to $44.

Also, council members Greg Schmitz, Scott Pearson, Erik Fiely, Luke Knapke, Al Post and Cliff Wendel appointed Lori Koch to serve two years on the income tax review board.