By Kathleen Leese

For Miami Valley Today

TROY — Troy City Council members took action on several resolutions and ordinances as well as heard from District 80 State Rep. candidate Johnathan Newman during their Monday, May 20, City Council meeting.

Troy Council members suspended the readings, declared an emergency and adopted the following three resolutions to:

• Amend professional services agreement with Jones and Henry Engineers Ltd., for additional services for the chlorine gas conversion project at the water treatment plant (WTP) for an additional $32,640, for a total agreement of $259,070. This project will decrease the risk, increase the resiliency of the WTP and address the anticipated future Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulatory changes by replacing chlorine gas with sodium hypochlorite. The additional funding approved is for additional design work required to comply with updated 2024 building code regulations, including an emergency egress code analysis and fire rating of the abutting wall between the new chlorine room and the remaining portion of the administrative area to minimize the scope of potential fire sprinkling requirements.

• Increase authorization for the curbside recycling program with Rumpke Inc., being the only bid received. The contract year authorization is $570,000 for years 2024-2025; $605,000 for years 2025-2026; $647,000 for years 2026-2027; $685,000 for years 2027-2028 and $730,000 for years 2028-2029. It was noted there should be no increase to residential refuse collection fees for the full five years.

• Approve the Miami County 911 plan. The Miami County 911 plan has been reviewed, updated and approved by the Miami County Board of Commissioners. The plan formally adopts the formation of the 9-1-1 Board and the structure of the Miami County Communications Center. The plan is reported to the state to show compliance with the Ohio Revised Code (ORC) for the formation of a regional 9-1-1 system. There are no changes proposed to the operation or structure of the 9-1-1 Board or the Miami County Communications Center. The County requested approval of the plan by May 24th.

City Council also approved the following ordinances by suspending the readings, and declaring an emergency for:

• Zoning code amendments recommended by the Troy Planning Commission regarding amendments to the DR-O district. This will permit alteration and adaptive reuse of existing buildings and allow for redevelopment of vacant land which can be designed with more flexibility and allow for more creative redevelopment of the oldest areas of Troy. It also addresses design standards for the historic preservation overlay and safe movement of vehicles according to the construction standards.

• For phase 15 of the sidewalk improvement program, suspending the readings and declaring an emergency. Phase 15 includes the Kings Chapel Subdivision. This includes St. Andrews Drive, Glasgow Drive, Aberdeen Court, Kings Chapel Drive, New Castle Drive, Glenmore Court, Galway Court, Inverness Court, Thornhill Drive, Foxchase Court West, Foxchase Court East, Westhaven Drive, Waterford Drive and Highland Court. The notice of the completion of the project and availability of final assessments for review has been done. Notice for objections were to be filed by May 3, with none received. The next step is for council members to enact anordinance of assessment. The property owners will then be given 30 days to make payment. Assessments not paid will be certified to the county auditor’s office for collections to start in 2025. That will allow the city of Troy to recover approximately $153,065.29 that will be invested in infrastructure rehabilitation in the public right-of-way.

During the communications portion of the meeting, Mayor Robin Oda told council members and those present Memorial Day ceremonies are scheduled by the American Legion for May 27. There will be a ceremony at the Veterans Memorial at Riverside Cemetery starting at 11 a.m., followed by a short ceremony at Old Soldier’s Circle.

Patrick Titterington, director of public service and safety, told council members there will be a second public meeting regarding the proposed streetscape replacement which will include utility upgrades and safety assessments, to Troy’s historic district. The meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, May 22, at 6 p.m. at the Hobart Arena Bravo Room. City staff and an LJB Inc. engineering consultant will outline the proposed project, design concepts and will take questions and feedback from stakeholders and the public.

Council member Bobby Phillips spoke about the program at the Troy-Miami County Public Library, which he recently visited. He noted it allows the public to make T-shirts, use 3-D printers, sewing machines and complete other projects and he added, it is “exceedingly inexpensive.” Phillips added he was very impressed with Isaiah Shannon, a library employee, who provides a lot of help to library patrons. Phillips added that he wanted to “give kudos to the library” for their “outstanding lab” where the public can create projects.

During the public portion of the meeting, 80th District State Rep. candidate Johnathan Newman addressed council, introducing himself and adding that he is hoping to partner with the council on legislation in the future. Newman said he and his wife raised their family in Troy.

“I’m happy that we have folks that do good work like you,” Newman said. He is the only candidate for the 80th district seat, which is currently held by Jena Powell. Powell is not seeking re-election.

In other items of interest, council members learned the Troy Aquatic Park 2024 season passes are now on sale for $10 off the membership rate. A total of 217 passes have been sold so far as well as 41 grandparent passes. The pool was inspected on May 15 by the Miami County Public Health Department. Opening day is scheduled for May 25.

Float Troy reservations have started and 72 tents have been reserved so far.

The Strawberry Jam is scheduled for May 31 and the Troy Strawberry Festival will be held on June 1 and 2.

It was noted that park departmentemployee David Couch has been promoted to park maintenance worker effective May 12.

Absent from the meeting were Council members Lynne Snee and William Twiss; their absences were excused by the board.

The next Troy City Council meeting is set for Monday, June 17, at 7 p.m.

The writer is a regular contributor to Miami Valley Today.