City Caucus - 2019 General Assembly

2019 General Assembly City Caucus

Monday, January 28, 2019

Holiday Inn French Quarter Perrysburg

Call to Order/Welcome/Introductions – Facilitator of the City Caucus and Oregon City Administrator Michael Beazley called the meeting to order. He explained the purpose of the caucus for those new to TMACOG.

Members in attendance included:

·      Cecelia Adams – Council Member At-Large, City of Toledo

·      Kevin Aller – Director of Public Service, City of Sylvania

·      Michael Aspacher – President of Council, City of Bowling Green

·      Michael Beazley – Administrator, City of Oregon

·      Lori Brodie – Mayor, City of Waterville

·      Naveen Chandra – Commissioner, Division of Transportation, City of Toledo

·      Jon Eckel – Director of Public Service, City of Perrysburg

·      Richard Edwards – Mayor, City of Bowling Green

·      Joe Fawcett – Assistant Municipal Administrator, City of Bowling Green

·      Larry Fioritto – Director of Corporate Services, Perstorp Polyols, Inc.

·      Ben Fitzpatrick – Zoning Inspector, City of Port Clinton

·      Alice Godsey – Director, Public Utilities, City of Perrysburg

·      Yvonne Harper – Council Member, District 4, City of Toledo

·      Christopher Harrison – Legislative Administrator, City of Toledo

·      Sarah Helbig – Executive Director of Marketing, Jones & Henry Engineers

·      Deb Hellman – Safety Service Director, City of Fostoria

·      Daniel Hunt – Mobility Manager, Toledo Area Regional Transit Authority

·      Gary Johnson – Council Member At-Large, City of Toledo

·      Cindy Kerr – Vice President, ConnecToledo – Downtown Toledo Development Corporation

·      David Kissinger – Council Member, City of Maumee

·      Nick Komives – Council Member At-Large, City of Toledo

·      Christopher Liebold – Council Member, 4^th Ward, City of Fremont

·      Edward Moore – Director, Dept. of Public Utilities, City of Toledo

·      Gregory Robinette – Council Member, City of Bowling Green

·      Angie Ruiz – Council Member, 3^rd Ward, City of Fremont

·      Lauren Rush – Stormwater Program Technician, City of Perrysburg

·      Bill Sanford – Economic Development Director, City of Sylvania

·      Edward Schimmel, Mayor, City of Northwood

·      Sandy Spang – Council Member At-Large, City of Toledo

·      Craig Stough – Mayor, City of Sylvania

·      Beth Tischler – Law Director, City of Maumee

Non-TMACOG members present included:

·      Samuel Herman – Student, Lake High School

·      Aidan Lighty – Student, Lake High School

·      Alberto Rodriguez – Student, Lake High School

·      David Zavac – Congressional Assistant, Office of U.S. Representative Marcy Kaptur

TMACOG support personnel included:

·      David Gedeon – Vice President of Transportation

·      Dana Doubler – Transportation Planner

·      Gilda Mitchell – Director of Membership and Outreach

Elections of Representatives to the Board of Trustees – The first order of business on the agenda was the election of caucus members to this year’s Board of Trustees. A motion was made by Gary Johnson and seconded by Nick Komives to elect the following representatives to this year’s TMACOG Board of Trustees.

Trustees

·         Ben Fitzpatrick – City of Port Clinton

·         David Kissinger – City of Maumee

·         Angela Ruiz – City of Fremont

Alternates

·         Gregory Robinette – City of Bowling Green

·         Scott Noonan – City of Maumee

·         Christopher Liebold – City of Fremont

Election of City Representative to Transportation Council – A motion was made by David Kissinger and seconded by Richard Edwards to elect Lori Brodie to represent the City Caucus on the Transportation Council.

Caucus Discussion Topics

·         Regional Water Discussion – Sylvania Mayor Craig Stough gave an update on the Toledo Area Water Authority. He stated that the most important factors right now are having a reasonable contract and redundant system. Also, having interconnection and a backup water source is important to prevent water issues from occurring in the future. Surrounding cities have been considering contracting with other cities besides Toledo. Nick Komives stated that the City of Toledo’s Technical Committee and Legal Committee are working on updating the contracts and MOUs with new water rates and there will be a public hearing on Thursday at 4pm to present these. Gary Johnson stated he would have liked for Council to have been more involved in the process initially, while Yvonne Harper noted the importance of getting feedback from constituents.

·         Possible Impacts of New Administration on Cities– Mike Beazley asked if anyone has talked to Governor Mike Dewine about city-related issues. Dave Kissinger said he met with Speaker Larry Householder and Dave got the sense the he is willing to be bipartisan and had a good conversation about cities. Mayor Kapszukiewicz has also attended fundraisers with the new Governor to try to work on bipartisanship.

·         State Budget Implications for Local TARTA Service Cuts and Sustainability – Mike Beazley informed everyone that efforts will still be made to shift to countywide transit. Major employers are asking about transit availability. Ballot issues in upcoming years are expected.

·         Lake Erie Bond Issue – Mike Beazley will be meeting with sponsors for the legislation Wednesday morning for the Lake Erie Bond Issue. The main issue contributing to algae in Lake Erie is agricultural practices. Jon Eckel said he would like to be part of the discussion. Gary Johnson asked about regional cooperation from other states. Alice Godsey said the bond should include performance measures and accountability. Mike Beazley said redundancy could be brought up as well.

·         State Gasoline Tax – Discussion at the state level have focused on having an issue on the ballot for fall of 2019. County Engineers have been meeting at the State and need broad based support. Funds from the state gas tax will be distributed proportionately to the current gas tax. Dave Gedeon stated that TMACOG’s Transportation Council will be discussing the transportation funding issue at the next meeting.

·         Cooperative Dispatch and Fire Issues– Lucas County Fire Chiefs Association asked the County to do a study on dispatch and fire coordination. City of Oregon is currently looking into doing countywide fire. The study found that Lucas County could save $3.5 to $4 million annually through more efficient dispatch. Several jurisdictions working together would have more efficient dispatch systems.

·         Criminal Justice and Court Funding – There have been concerns about how the municipal courts are funded. Most counties in Ohio provide funds for running their municipal courts, but Lucas does not. There are also concerns about how courts will be funded once autonomous technology becomes more common and fewer traffic violations occur. There also is an issue with those who are being summoned to court not being residents of the jurisdiction where the funding comes from.

·         Legislative Update – Not discussed independently, mainly included in relation to previously mentioned topics.

Next Steps – Caucus member went around the room and discussed newsworthy information on their respective Cities.

Adjourn – Mr. Beazley called for an adjournment of the meeting.

Toledo Metropolitan Area Council of Governments | www.tmacog.org