Waynesville council refers churchand county water-fee waiver requests to Public Works

Ned Denlinger, speaking on behalf of Waynesville Community Church, told the council July 15 that the church has pressure problems after an addition and that plumbers recommended increasing the meter from a 5/8" to a 1" meter. He asked the Village to waive the fee difference tied to the larger meter. The minutes record the 5/8" connection fee as $4,300 and the 1" connection fee as $18,000, a difference of $13,700 that the church asked the Village to waive.

Council members asked about calculations and fairness. Mr. Zack Gallagher said he wanted assurance the church will do its own plumbing work and noted that churches provide community services; Mr. Chris Colvin said he did not want the Village to appear to show favoritism. Ms. Dedden warned the council about setting a precedent, noting Warren County had also requested a waiver tied to a large leak. Law Director Jeff Forbes advised that it is within Council's authority to grant a waiver and that legislation could be drafted for a vote at a later meeting.

After discussing the requests, the council voted 6-0 (motion by Mrs. Connie Miller, second by Mr. Zack Gallagher) to refer the Warren County and church fee-waiver requests to the Public Works Committee. Public Works is scheduled to meet Aug. 5, 2024 at 6:00 p.m., when Mr. Denlinger was asked to attend and discuss the church's situation.

The minutes record some inconsistent naming of the congregation in public comments: the representative introduced himself as speaking "on behalf of Waynesville Community Church," while later remarks in the minutes refer to "Community Baptist Church." The record does not specify which is the congregation's official legal name.

Next steps: Public Works will review both requests on Aug. 5 and report back to Council; no waiver was granted at the July 15 meeting.