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Council adopts appropriation amendment, authorizes $700,000 advance and FEMA grant sponsorship; term-limits charter resolution fails
Summary
Council passed an emergency FY2026 appropriation amendment and authorized a $700,000 advance to the capital fund and approved sponsoring a FEMA flood-mitigation grant; a separate resolution to expand mayoral term limits failed on roll call.
At its July 27 meeting, the Waterville City Council took multiple fiscal and procedural votes: it adopted an emergency amendment to the FY2026 appropriation ordinance, authorized a temporary $700,000 advance from the general fund to the 5-year capital fund, and approved municipal sponsorship of a FEMA/OEMA individual flood-mitigation grant application for 137 South River Road. A separate resolution proposing a charter amendment to increase the mayoral term limit from two to three terms failed on a roll-call vote.
Administrator John Kochenauer explained the appropriation amendment (ordinance 0826) as the second adjustment to the 2026 budget and said the amendment included items such as a $700,000 advance to the capital fund, $10,000 for income-tax retainer fees, $22,000 for prosecutor services, $20,000 for police overtime, and multiple fire and utility line items. "This is our 2nd amendment to the 2026 appropriation. Significant items include revenue and expense for advance from the general fund... $700,000," Kochenauer said.
Council voted to suspend the rules and approved ordinance 0826 as an emergency measure. Council also passed resolution 24-26 authorizing the $700,000 advance from the general fund to help cash flow ongoing construction expenses and committed to repaying the advance within a year as reimbursements arrive. Kochenauer noted the city expects roughly $1,655,163 in grant funding this year and said the advance is temporary.
Council next approved resolution 25-26 to authorize the administrator to file and enter an agreement with the Ohio Emergency Management Agency and FEMA to pursue a flood-mitigation grant for a property at 137 South River Road that has a history of multiple federal flood-insurance claims; the city will sponsor and, if awarded, act as the subrecipient to disburse funds under program requirements.
Separately, council debated resolution 23-26, to place a mayoral-term-limits amendment on the November 2026 ballot; after discussion about whether the Charter Review Committee should vet the change and about an effective date, a roll-call vote failed and the resolution did not pass.
