Purchases approved, town hall meeting set in West Jeff

(Posted Feb. 7, 2019)

By Kristy Zurbrick, Madison Editor

West Jefferson village council gave John Mitchell, public service director, the green light to move forward with purchases totaling $159,000. Some involve updates to village hall. Some are equipment purchases.

All required council approval because each exceeds Mitchell’s purchasing authority of $7,500. All were approved as part of the 2019 budget. They are:

• new carpet in the finance office, tax office, public service office and downstairs hallway at village hall at a cost not to exceed $10,000;
• new windows for the entire upstairs of village hall and in the tax and service director offices at a cost not to exceed $26,000;
• a new one-ton utility truck for the water distribution and sewer collection department for field crews to use for maintenance and repairs to the water and sewer systems at a cost not to exceed $36,000;
• a used bucket truck for the street department, state highway, and buildings and grounds department to work on traffic signals, street lights, park lighting, uptown decorations and tree trimming at a cost not to exceed $35,000; and
• a new diesel 11-foot finish cut mower to mow Route 40 and Route 29 and the village parks at a cost not to exceed $52,000.

The money to pay for the equipment purchases is coming from the budgets of multiple departments because multiple departments use or benefit from the equipment, Mitchell said.

In his regular update to council, Mitchell reported that snow removal work has gone well this past month and that he just ordered another 100 tons of salt. He also reported that the new fence surrounding the village pool was going up. It was slated to be finished last week.

In other business, council gave Rebecca Arnott, village finance director, approval to reinvest $1 million of village interim funds in a certificate of deposit (CD). The current CD was up for renewal. Last year, the CD earned over $17,000 in interest.

Town Hall Meeting

Mayor Ray Martin announced that the next town hall meeting will take place at 7 p.m. Feb. 22 at the West Jefferson Community Center, 230 Cemetery Rd. Held periodically, the meetings are an opportunity for the public to come and ask questions about anything going on in the village. Any topic is fair game, Martin said. He, along with council members and department heads, will give updates about various projects and programs, then open the floor to the public.

Recognition

Martin presented certificates of recognition to Nathan Peters and Wyatt Keyt who placed first and second overall, respectively, in the Madison County Spelling Bee. Both boys are students at West Jefferson Middle School.

The next regular meeting of West Jefferson village council will take place at 7 p.m. Feb. 18 in council chambers, located on the second floor of village hall, 28 E. Main St. For details, visit www.westjeffersonohio.gov.