Village Manager's Report

For the September 6th, 2005 Council Meeting

The following report is intended to supplement the information related to the upcoming Village Council meeting. If you have questions or comments about these or other issues, please feel free to give me a call at (937) 767-1279 , or e-mail me at phawkey(at)yso.com - Phil Hawkey, Interim Village Manager

A. Council Items:

1st Reading of Thistle Creek PUD-R Preliminary Plan Approval: This step is analogous to the rezoning process in standard development. The public hearing is scheduled for your next meeting. Since the land will be subdivided into lots for sale, approval of the final plan will also require Council action.

1st Reading of Amendment to Section 206.02 Disposal of Surplus Property: This legislation was developed by Manager Hillard and Solicitor Chambers. It allows for items valued under $1,000 to be disposed of by the Village Manager without prior Council approval. The current process will remain for items of greater value. A list of the current surplus items is included with the ordinance. If passed on to a second reading, an accompanying resolution will be proposed authorizing disposal of an amended list, excluding the exempt items.

Award of Bid for the Public Library Entrance Improvements: This project will address all three entrances to the Library. The front entrance will get new steps, removal of the noncompliant ramp and repair of the limestone on the columns. The rear entrance will be modified to improve wheelchair access and space for bicycle storage. The northeast entrance will be completely rebuilt to comply with current accessibility standards. This project would not have been possible without the generous contributions of $15,000 each from the Yellow Springs Community Foundation and the Yellow Springs Library Association.

B. Agenda Planning:

Fuel Purchase Bid – We have been very satisfied with the current system of using fleet cards at Speedway. The new bid will allow us to lock in a pricing system (not a price) through 2008. Our existing fuel tanks at the Public Works Facility are not part of the surplus property declaration as previously planned. They are being filled to provide a price cushion and emergency supply through the current unstable market period.

BZA Quorum Amendment – Currently the BZA quorum is four for a board of five. The likelihood of conflicts of interest in a town our size, coupled with normal absences can make it difficult to obtain a quorum. Solicitor Chambers recommends that we change to a quorum of three, as is the case for Council and Planning Commission. Council is also asked to consider if a Member of Council should serve on the board, either as a full member or an alternate.

Gas Aggregation – At the recommendation of Amp-Ohio and IGS, I will be proposing legislation to drop the aggregation program for this year. No significant advantage has resulted in the last two seasons (a $10 savings per household in 2004 and an estimated $90 loss in 2005). Current regulations give Vectren advantages that customer choice programs cannot overcome:
1. Tax differential – Our accounts are charged 6.5% Greene County/Ohio Sales Tax. Vectren accounts pay 5% excise tax.
2. Refund – Vectren has been ordered to refund $9.5 million to its customers. This will only go to active Vectren customers at the time of refund. Customer Choice programs like ours will not receive their share.
3. Unstable price – Our price in 2004 was $6.99 per MCF. This year’s price is $9.22. At the end of August we could have expected a negotiated price in the range of $13.50 to $14.00. With the hurricane related shortages and price instabilities, the near future will not favor those negotiating fixed prices.
4. Billing – Vectren will add a 2% surcharge for billing.
5. “Balancing Fees” for our accounts are double those of standard Vectren accounts.
6. Routing – Vectren controls the pipelines through which the independent suppliers’ gas travels. They are choosing the most expensive routes for us.

Dropping the program this year will not prevent us from adopting it in future years. In the meantime we can join with AMP-O, others fighting to level the regulatory playing field.

Final Thoughts:

Rob - The last month I’ve focused on the transition to interim manager by conferring with Rob almost every day. His willingness to spend the time organizing information and briefing me on a wide variety of issues will, I’m sure, prove invaluable. He was wonderful person to work with. I hope to maintain and enhance the organization, systems and policies he put in place.

Personnel - Jane King has accepted a new position as a Utility Service Worker 2 – Water and Electric Distribution, and will phase out of meter reading as replacement staff is trained. Joel Crandall is retiring from the Streets, Sewers and Parks crew effective September 6th. We are taking applications for Meter Reader, Meter Reader/Utilities Service Worker in Water and Electric Distribution, and Utility Service Worker in Streets Sewers & Parks. We will soon advertise for a new Supervisor of Water and Wastewater Treatment to replace Troy Slone, who is retiring at the end of the year.

When both meter reader positions are filled they will no longer be providing backup to the Utility Account Clerks. All three Utility Account Clerks (Christine Davis, Roxie Potts and Suzie Yount) are now located on the first floor under the direct supervision of Finance Director Sharon Potter.

Christine will still focus on utilities.
Roxie will continue to take calls on 767-3401, handle walk-in citizens’ concerns, track service requests and provide administrative assistance.
Suzie’s primary duties will be accounts payable, building rental, pool passes and utility support.
All three are or will be cross-trained so there is adequate backup, and so duties can be adjusted to daily needs.

Ed Amrhein, part time Planning Assistant, is assigned to full time duty through the remainder of 2005. He will keep the 767-3702 phone number and spend at least part of his time in the office being vacated by Roxie. I’ve changed my number to 767- 1279 and will remain in my current office on the second floor. Rob’s office will be empty until a Village Manager is hired.

Wastewater Treatment Plant– Lightning damage that occurred on July 21st became fully evident during the last two weeks. Minor repairs were made following the storm, but by the first of August we detected high ammonia and reported it to the OEPA. By last weekend the compromised system was evidencing itself in discharge violations and foul odors.

Following consultations with John van Dommelen of the OEPA’s compliance assistance program on August 18th and 22nd we examined our equipment to determine why there wasn’t enough air in the system. Jeff Hissong, Director of the Greene County Sanitary Engineering Department, was kind enough to lend us the services of Phil Szulborski, their Manager of Central Maintenance, for an afternoon. With his advise and the assistance of private contractors and our Utility Service staff, we are well on the way to full recovery.
The system is operated by three blowers and designed to operate with two running at any given time. Significant damage was detected in two of the blower motors and one electric panel. Automatic controls that were malfunctioning caused blowers to shut down.

To date the two motors were reconditioned and reinstalled, repairs were made to several of the offending controls and an automatic valve was by-passed. We expect that electric and control repairs scheduled for this week will restore us to normal operation. Meanwhile the treatment has improved greatly and the ill effects substantially reduced.

Council action may be necessary for budget adjustments to cover the cost of repairs. However, we anticipate recovering a major portion of the cost with an insurance claim on the lightning strike.

Meetings - I’ve attended meetings of Greene County Combined Dispatch Center, Springfield Airport Advisory Committee, Northern Miami Valley Local Government Association, AMP-Ohio, Greene County Economic Development Group, Little Miami River Basin Council, Accident Analysis Training (with village supervisory staff and Safety Team members), and introductory meetings with representatives from Employee Care, Bureau of Workmen’s’ Compensation, Rumpke and AMP-Ohio.