Lakemore Council approves hires, grants, lease and multiple budget and policy measures

The Village of Lakemore council on May 13 adopted multiple resolutions and ordinances covering personnel hires, insurance and appropriations, grants, a lease agreement for park fields and policy changes for police body-worn and dash-camera records.

The action: council approved resolutions to hire Dorian Wolf and Jason Mazzaro as part-time patrol officers for the Lakemore Police Department (each to serve a one-year probationary period), accepted a $6,442.50 Ohio law enforcement body armor grant (with the village responsible for $2,147.50), accepted a $3,000 Ohio Commission on Fatherhood grant, approved an audit engagement with Charles E. Harrison & Associates Inc. (estimate $14,000), and approved a lease of park fields to the Friends of Lakemore Waterworks Park. Council also accepted a second amendment to a master meter agreement with the City of Akron and passed an ordinance amending the village employee policies to implement changes tied to House Bill 315 governing fees for body-worn and dash-camera public-records requests.

Why it matters: the votes move forward routine municipal administration — personnel, grants, audits, and intergovernmental agreements — and implement a new statewide law (House Bill 315) that, according to the adopted ordinance text, permits law enforcement agencies to charge up to $75 per hour for time spent retrieving, reviewing and producing body‑worn or dash‑camera footage with a cap of $700 per request.

Selected approvals and amounts - Hires: Resolution 7453-2025 approved hiring Jason Mazzaro as a part-time patrol officer; Resolution 7454-2025 approved hiring Dorian Wolf as a part-time patrol officer. Wolf was sworn in during the meeting. - Grants: Resolution 7460-2025 accepted the Ohio law enforcement body armor grant ($6,442.50 award; village match/responsibility $2,147.50). Resolution 7461-2025 accepted a $3,000 award from the Ohio Commission on Fatherhood. - Audit and professional services: Resolution 7459-2025 accepted an engagement with Charles E. Harrison & Associates, Inc. for the 2024 audit; the estimate in the resolution is $14,000. - Insurance: Resolution 7455-2025 amended a prior resolution to increase the annual liability and property insurance premium from $83,111 to $83,182. - Lease and agreements: Resolution 7456-2025 approved a waterworks lease agreement with the Friends of Lakemore Waterworks Park; Resolution 7457-2025 accepted a second amendment to a master meter agreement with the City of Akron. - Budget/appropriations: Ordinance 1889-2025 amended appropriations to add $11,475 to the general fund for the Dodds Park project (to be reimbursed by a NOPEC grant) and included other transfers and increases noted in the ordinance text. The council also authorized transfers to the general obligation bond retirement fund and increased revenue for the COPS FAST Fund as stated in the ordinance. - New fund and capital reimbursements: Resolution 7462-2025 requested auditor of state approval to create a police K‑9 fund (2082). Resolution 7463-2025 declared the village’s official intent to seek reimbursement for Fairdale, Michelson and Danforth improvements from tax-exempt debt with an expected maximum aggregate principal amount of $2,106,307.

Policy change tied to state law The council adopted Ordinance 1886-2025 amending the Village of Lakemore employee policies and procedures to reflect House Bill 315, which — per the ordinance text adopted by council — allows agencies to charge up to $75 per hour for time spent retrieving, downloading, reviewing, redacting and producing body-worn and dash-camera footage, with a cap of $700 per request. The ordinance language states all changes take effect at the earliest date allowed by law.

Procedure and votes For each item the council moved to dispense with the three‑reading rule and then voted by roll call. The roll calls recorded in the transcript show unanimous affirmative votes from present members on the items listed.

Ending The approvals complete a broad administrative agenda including personnel, grants, audit work, and a policy update to align with recent state legislation. Several items reference attached agreements or engagement letters that the village administrator said are on file with village offices.