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West Jefferson council approves supplemental appropriations, reclassifies parks job and places charter amendments on November ballot
Summary
At its meeting, the Village of West Jefferson council approved supplemental appropriations for community events, reclassified the recreation manager to parks and recreation superintendent with a pay change, temporarily waived a hunting restriction tied to an ODNR/Nature Conservancy permit, and voted to place Charter Review Commission recommendations on the November ballot.
The Village of West Jefferson council on Monday approved a series of ordinances and resolutions including supplemental appropriations for community programming, a personnel reclassification in the parks department and a ballot referral of charter changes.
Becky, the director of finance, said the village received a $3,000 donation from Zion Church that the council was asked to allocate to the Christmas in the Park event. "Zion Zion Church ... decided to give us $3,000 asking us to donate it to the Christmas Eve," Becky said during discussion on Ordinance 26-036, which passed unanimously by roll call (7–0).
On Ordinance 26-040, the council voted to change the Recreation & Special Events Manager position to Parks and Recreation Superintendent and set a new pay rate. Council member Erica expressed concern about the size of the increase, saying she worried about the message a roughly 16% raise sends compared with past raises for public safety staff. A roll call on the measure produced four votes in favor, one opposed and two abstentions; the motion carried.
The council adopted Ordinance 26-041, a supplemental appropriation related to the new parks and recreation superintendent, by the same roll-call configuration (4 in favor, 1 opposed, 2 abstaining). Ordinance 26-043 received a first reading; no action was taken on that item at this meeting.
On matters of land use and regulatory accommodation, the council approved Resolution 26-044 temporarily waiving section 549.09 of the codified ordinances to allow a no-hunting designation on certain village land while a permit issued by The Nature Conservancy and the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) is in effect. The resolution passed unanimously (7–0).
Finally, the council voted unanimously to approve Resolution 26-045, which places the Charter Review Commission's recommended changes to the village charter on the November general-election ballot. Mayor Martin and other members praised the charter committee's work and encouraged public participation in the upcoming vote.
Next steps: several measures (including the Ordinance 26-043 first reading) will return for additional readings or implementation steps; the administration will implement appropriation adjustments and, where pay changes are effective on hire/pay-cycle terms, finance will update payroll figures accordingly.
