Germantown council approves $75,000 CDBG contract for senior center generator and adopts pay-schedule ordinance

The Germantown City Council on Monday approved a contract with the Montgomery County Board of County Commissioners to accept up to $75,000 in Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds to purchase a backup generator for the Germantown Senior Center, and adopted Ordinance 25-08 updating the city pay schedule to align council pay with Ohio Public Employees Retirement System (OPERS) requirements.

City Manager (unnamed) told the council the generator “will provide power to the senior center during outages and will enable us to provide shelter to those in need and also to operate certain city services out of the senior center during an emergency.” The contract authorization was included in the consent agenda and carried on a roll-call vote.

The measures were part of a short agenda that also included financial housekeeping. Pat Shively, a city staff member who reviewed financial items, said the city included the 2025 first-quarter credit-card report under the consent agenda and described a transfers resolution that “is part of the 2025 budget” to allow quarterly transfers among funds. Shively also noted the quarterly credit-card reports relate to a state house bill referenced in the meeting (transcribed as “house bill 3, 12”), which the city says requires quarterly review of credit-card reports by council.

During a separate public hearing on Ordinance 25-08 — which replaces the pay-schedule section of the administrative code with an updated pay schedule — no public comments were offered. Council moved to approve the ordinance and adopted it by roll call.

Council also received an introduction for Ordinance 25-12, an amendment to the 2025 appropriations to create a new “Creek Creek Bank erosion fund” and adjust appropriations accordingly; a public hearing on that ordinance is scheduled for April 7, 2025. The meeting ended with a motion to enter executive session to consider the purchase or sale of property, personnel compensation matters, and pending or imminent litigation under Ohio Revised Code Section 121.22.

Votes at a glance

- Consent agenda (accept minutes, 2025 first-quarter credit-card report, transfers and related items, and Resolution authorizing the city manager to enter into a contract with the Board of County Commissioners of Montgomery County, Ohio, not to exceed $75,000 for the CDBG Germantown Senior Center generator project): motion to approve carried on roll call. Recorded votes: Mayor Johnson — Yes; Councilmember Jones — Yes (note recorded in the meeting that his remote vote “doesn't count”); Councilmember Coogel — Yes; an unnamed councilmember (transcript redacted as “****”) — Yes; Councilmember Reid — Yes; Councilmember Reddick — Yes; Councilmember Wasek — Yes. (Tally recorded in meeting: majority Yes; meeting note: Jones' remote vote was later said not to count.)

- Ordinance 25-08 (replace pay schedule in administrative code): after a public hearing with no speakers, motion to approve carried on roll call (Mayor Johnson — Yes; Coogel — Yes; **** — Yes; Reid — Yes; Reddick — Yes; Wasek — Yes).

- Ordinance 25-12 (amend 2025 appropriations to create new erosion fund): introduced; public hearing set for April 7, 2025; no final vote taken at this meeting.

- Executive session: council voted to adjourn into executive session under Ohio Revised Code Section 121.22 to discuss property purchase/sale, personnel compensation, and pending or imminent litigation.

Why it matters

The generator project uses federal CDBG funds to increase the senior center’s capacity to serve as a shelter and operate city services during outages — a service that affects older residents and anyone who relies on the senior center in an emergency. The pay-schedule ordinance was adopted to align council compensation rules with OPERS-related requirements cited by staff; the meeting record shows the ordinance moved forward after no public comment. The appropriations amendment introduced for erosion control creates a new fund that will change how related costs are budgeted but requires a separate public hearing before action.

What the council said and next steps

City Manager (unnamed) explained emergency uses for the generator. Pat Shively described the budget transfers and the quarterly credit-card reporting requirement referenced in the meeting record. The contract-authorizing resolution and Ordinance 25-08 were adopted during the meeting; Ordinance 25-12 will return for a public hearing on April 7, 2025. Council moved into executive session to discuss land, personnel and litigation matters and planned to reconvene afterward.