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Council approves several ordinances including Northam Park field work, pool repairs and a TIF property transfer
Summary
At its Feb. 9 meeting, Upper Arlington City Council approved multiple ordinances: contracts for Northam Park athletic field renovation and Reed Road Waterpark pool finish, a three-year Microsoft licensing agreement, an appropriation for HR consulting, and a parcel-transfer to implement a tax-increment financing deal under Ohio law.
Upper Arlington City Council moved through several legislative items and approved multiple ordinances on second and first readings.
Ordinance 4-2026 authorized the city manager to enter into a contract with Sweet Meadow Farm Drainage for renovation of the East Athletic Fields at Northam Park; the motion was moved, seconded and approved by voice vote.
Ordinance 5-2026 authorized a three-year contract for Microsoft software licenses via resellers (Dell Inc. was named as a reseller in the staff report). Council member Kulowitz announced he was abstaining on Ordinance 5-2026 (and noted he would also abstain on Ordinance 7-2026) prior to the voice vote; the ordinance passed.
Ordinance 7-2026 authorized the city to accept title to certain real property and immediately transfer the title back to the current owners to implement tax-increment financing pursuant to Ohio Revised Code section 5709.41. Council member (speaker 14) explained he did not participate in earlier votes on the National Church Residences redevelopment but said he had reviewed the plans and contracts and believes the transfer and TIF are in the public interest, citing replacement tax revenue and additional green space around a lake as public benefits. City Attorney Schulman and development staff explained the parcel-by-parcel TIF approach is authorized by statute and that prior documents contemplated this transfer.
Ordinance 8-2026 authorized the city manager to contract with Aqua Pool and Concrete for replacement of the pool finish at Reed Road Waterpark and was approved by voice vote.
Ordinance 9-2026 appropriated funds for human resources consulting services after the HR director announced retirement on March 6; staff said the contract would likely be short term (around 12 months) to fill a gap during seasonal hiring and to provide an evaluative report on HR structure. Council approved the appropriation.
Ordinance 6-2026 (code amendment to enact Chapter 161, Older Adults Advisory Board) required three readings and was subject to a public hearing tonight with no council action; Ordinance 10-2026 (to add a Human Resource Manager position to the employment table) received its first reading and will return for a later vote.
Staff indicated they will distribute additional memos and packet materials for items where council had technical questions. The council closed the legislative portion of the meeting and received a brief city manager update before adjourning.
