Visitor Eric Medici tells council parking change would add 12 cars to road, asks for alley-easement clarity

Eric Medici, introduced to the council as a visitor, used the public-comment portion of the Plain City Council meeting to press for clarity about an alley easement he said affects access to his commercial parking.

"I'm here because I am considering changing the parking behind my building due to recent troubles," Medici said, adding that if he changed the configuration "there'll be 12 more cars parked on the road" and that six vehicles had previously blocked up to 10 of his parking spaces. He asked whether the village treats a vacated alley with a permanent easement as the same legal right-of-way as a sidewalk — a question he said he wanted the council to answer before altering his property.

Medici said a first responding officer had not enforced access in the easement and recounted asking an on-site sergeant to intervene. He told the council he expected documentation and noted the impact on customers and nearby Main Street parking. He also told the council, "Please speak to your mayor about slandering somebody in public about having information," an allegation that was raised during his remarks and not resolved on the record.

Mayor acknowledged the comment period and passed Medici's questions to the village administrator. Village Administrator Miss Lipton responded later in the meeting with several administrative updates: "The stop signs at Dough and Lantern were installed today," she said, and she reminded residents that "the comprehensive plan is open for comment until June 3. It's available on our website." Lipton also described staff preparations for Memorial Day and July 4 events and thanked the police department for recent work following a local tragedy.

What happens next: Medici asked the council to provide clarification and documentation about the alley easement and enforcement; the transcript does not record a definitive on-the-record response or a council directive to staff on this matter.