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Council approves expedited joint OPWC application; concrete road funding discussed
Summary
Council members voted to suspend normal notice rules and authorize a joint Ohio Public Works Commission (OPWC) application with the city of Norton, while council committees discussed a matching grant for the city's concrete road program; the exact appropriation amount for the program differed across committee reports and requires clarification.
Council members voted Monday to move ahead immediately with a joint application to the Ohio Public Works Commission so the city can seek state capital improvement funding for local infrastructure projects. The vote to suspend normal notice rules came after committee members said the OPWC application deadline is Sept. 5.
The move matters because the OPWC program provides matching capital assistance—grants, loans or local debt support—that the city plans to use for street and infrastructure projects. Councilors said time limits required suspending council Rule 3.02 (the 10-day rule) and invoking Rule 7.02 (emergency procedure) so the mayor can sign a joint application with the city of Norton.
At a special utilities meeting, officials introduced a letter from Todd Shreve, identified in committee materials as the city’s director of public service, requesting legislation “authorizing the mayor to enter into a joint application between the city of Norton and the city of Barberton to apply for the Ohio Public Works Commission, OPWC, State Capital Improvement Program.” Committee members then moved to suspend the procedural rules and to call the ordinance for consideration.
The concrete road program was discussed across committee meetings as a project that would use OPWC matching funds. The Street, Sidewalk and Lighting Committee reported a request from Todd Shreve to appropriate funds from the street capital fund to the capital budget for the concrete road program. Committee members and Finance described the program as a 50–50 match with OPWC.
Transcript references to the appropriation differ: in the Street, Sidewalk and Lighting Committee report the request appears as $2,230,000; the Finance Committee report lists $230,000 and describes it as a 50–50 OPWC match. Council materials on the floor identify the funding as an OPWC-eligible project but do not resolve the differing amounts. Councilors voted to call the legislation for consideration; the motion to suspend rules and to call the ordinance passed by voice vote.
Council did not adopt the ordinance on the spot; the immediate action was procedural—suspending notice rules and authorizing the mayor to submit the joint application. Further legislative steps, including the exact appropriation amount and formal adoption of any appropriation ordinance, were left to upcoming agenda items and to the Finance Committee for final review.
Officials and staff did not provide a clarified appropriation figure during the meeting. Council members asked staff to proceed with the OPWC application because of the September deadline.
What’s next: The mayor’s office will be authorized to sign the joint OPWC application; staff and Finance will need to return to council with the final appropriation ordinance that specifies the concrete program funding and whether it is covered by a 50–50 OPWC match.
