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Mayor outlines ballot items, OPWC funding history and infrastructure projects; city seeks culvert grant
Summary
Mayor Manning briefed council on two upcoming ballot measures — a city charter amendment to remove the fire chief from civil service and a statewide OPWC funding measure — and described recent grant activity and infrastructure priorities, including a culvert grant application and persistent streetlight and trash concerns.
Mayor Manning told council the May 6 primary will include two measures that affect Willowick voters and municipal infrastructure funding: a city charter amendment (Issue 3, Willow-only) that would remove the fire chief position from civil service, and State Issue 2 concerning the Ohio Public Works Commission (OPWC), a bonding-backed program that funds local infrastructure projects.
Manning said removing the fire chief position from civil service would give the city more flexibility in filling the position and help maintain stability in the part-time fire department as it adds full-time captains. He described Issue 3 as a local ballot item limited to Willowick residents. Manning also described State Issue 2 as a ten-year OPWC funding renewal that would bond approximately $250 million per year for 10 years (described in the meeting as $250,000,000 a year for 10 years) to support public works grants and loans.
Manning summarized the city’s recent OPWC history, saying Willowick has secured about $9.2 million in OPWC grants and roughly $2.3 million in zero-percent loans over the life of the program, and that the city received approximately $2.5 million in grants over a recent five-year span. On federal grants, Manning said the city submitted for a culvert replacement at Larimar and prioritized that project over a parking-lot request; the culvert was considered the larger and more urgent need.
On operational concerns, a waste-services representative reported the city is hauling about 24 tons of garbage per day and that complaints have been limited; the mayor said county officials are investigating streetlight malfunction reports and that the county engineer plans to work section by section to isolate controller issues. Manning said county crews remain in “winter mode” but expected progress once plows are removed from trucks.
Manning also noted community events and small-business recognitions and encouraged residents to seek information on the ballot items and grants. No formal council action on the ballot measures was taken; the mayor’s remarks were informational.
Ending: Manning encouraged anyone with questions about the ballot items to contact the mayor’s office or city council members; the council did not take formal action on the ballot measures at this meeting.
