Buckeye Lake council adopts charter amendments, amends permanent appropriations in unanimous votes

Buckeye Lake Village Council unanimously adopted two charter-amendment ordinances and passed an emergency amendment to permanent appropriations at its July 22 meeting.

Council President John Lemmon opened the meeting at 7 p.m. and the council moved quickly through routine items before taking up the ordinances. Councilor Don Cable moved to adopt Ordinance 2024-33 — which would place an amendment clarifying responsibilities and qualifications for boards and commissions (Article 7 of the charter) before voters — after a motion to suspend the rules. Councilor Douglas Keener seconded the adoption; the roll call vote was 7–0 in favor.

Councilor Kellie Green then moved to suspend the rules on Ordinance 2024-34, which proposes an amendment to Article 8 to clarify purchasing and contracting responsibilities; Councilor Douglas Keener seconded the suspension, and Keener later moved to adopt the ordinance with Councilor Deb Julian seconding. That adoption also carried on a 7–0 roll call.

Separately, Councilor Keener moved and Councilor Tom Wolfe seconded to suspend the rules and adopt Ordinance 2024-36, an amendment to the village’s permanent appropriations ordinance (2024-10); the council approved the emergency appropriation change unanimously.

Other formal actions that passed without dissent included approval of the July 8 meeting minutes (motion by Councilor Tom Wolfe, seconded by Councilor Sue Wadley) and acceptance of the June reconciliations and July 18 Treasurer’s report (motion by Councilor Wolfe, seconded by Councilor Douglas Keener). Council also approved a community event motion to hold a Halloween “Trunk or Treat” on Oct. 31 (motion by Councilor Wolfe, seconded by Councilor Kellie Green). In unfinished business, Council President John Lemmon moved (seconded by Don Cable) to exclude the Charter Commission recommendations for Articles 1–6 and 9–12 from the November ballot; that motion passed 7–0.

Why it matters: The two charter amendments approved for submission to voters affect how local boards and commissions are constituted and how purchasing and contracting responsibilities are defined for the village. The emergency amendment to permanent appropriations adjusts the current-year budget authority and was approved under the council’s emergency rule suspensions.

The council scheduled committee meetings for August to follow up on finance, personnel, and community-development matters. The next regular council meeting is set for Aug. 12, 2024.

Votes at a glance - Approval of July 8 minutes: 7 yes, 0 no (motion: Tom Wolfe; second: Sue Wadley). - Approval of Treasurer’s report (June reconciliations, dated July 18): 7 yes, 0 no (motion: Tom Wolfe; second: Douglas Keener). - Ordinance 2024-33 (Charter — Article 7): motion to suspend rules passed; adoption passed 7–0 (motion to adopt: Don Cable; second: Douglas Keener). - Ordinance 2024-34 (Charter — Article 8): motion to suspend rules passed; adoption passed 7–0 (motion to adopt: Douglas Keener; second: Deb Julian). - Ordinance 2024-36 (Permanent appropriations amendment): motion to suspend rules passed; adoption passed 7–0 (motion to adopt: Douglas Keener; second: Kellie Green). - Halloween Trunk or Treat event (Oct. 31): approved 7–0 (motion: Tom Wolfe; second: Kellie Green). - Exclude Charter Commission recommendations (Articles 1–6, 9–12) from Nov. ballot: approved 7–0 (motion: John Lemmon; second: Don Cable).

Ending: The council adjourned at 8:20 p.m.; items will proceed to committee review and several matters are slated for August committee meetings.