Council focused on the numbers in a review and legislative session.
As discussed in a review session before the legislative session, money is tight - but the mayor, auditor, and council members say they are watching numbers, working to cut costs, and are proactive on balancing and stretching funds.
Actions in this session included balancing salary and benefit costs after union negotiations were resolved early this year...as well as delaying making a voluntary payment on past street repaving...and other upcoming legislation.
Along with other council members, Dave Tatman explained that the expensive preparation for highway repaving in the city is a price worth paying.
But the $80,000 cost to the city for 102 ADA-compliant ramps for pedestrian crosswalks...being paid by license fees shared with the city by the state...is only 10% of more than a million dollars that the state will pay for repaving North High (State Route 104) and South Paint (State Route 772) streets.
hear Dave Tatman explain expensive preparation for highway repaving is price worth paying
Dustin Proehl saw extra funds not needed for new fire department digital radios spent for another good cause. It had to be used for fire prevention, so the department applied it toward giving away smoke detectors...and something to help with rescue attempts, without damage - "Knox boxes."
They are like the locked key cases that realtors use, but stronger, and only the fire department will have the combination. They will allow rescuers to get inside without causing damage.
hear Dustin Proehl on spinning FD radio refund into fire prevention
A ghost of the "red light cameras" was chased away recently. Law Director Sherri Rutherford told council about a threatened lawsuit, where a Tim Rhoades requested all the images from the RedFlex traffic light cameras that were removed after controversy a few years ago.
But the judge disagreed with the claim, because Rhoades had never been affected by the cameras, and was never even in Chillicothe at the time. The city's insurance covered the legal costs.
hear Law Director Sherri Rutherford on red light camera lawsuit thrown out
This may have been a record council session with 19 items of legislation...and about 24 votes on moving forward and then passing many of them.
Kevin Coleman regularly reports on Chillicothe & Circleville councils
