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The meeting on Tuesday, March 31 of the City of Sharonville’s Council began with Mayor Virgil Lovitt introducing Dan Brants, a senior at Cincinnati Christian School who has been shadowing him. He has been very welcome.
Police Chief Mike Schappa, along with Kevin Hardman and Mayor Lovitt introduced the City’s newest officer, Adam Wong. He came to Sharonville from the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office. Officer Wong was sworn in by Mayor Lovitt while his family watched. On hand were Officer Wong’s wife Nikki, sons Alex and Cameron, his parents and grandparents and also his wife’s parents. Mayor Lovitt exclaimed how nice it is to have someone so excited to be a part of the department.
Mayor Lovitt announced that the local churches will have a National Night of Prayer on May 7 at 7:00 pm at the Recreation Center. He also informed everyone about the approval given to the Convention Center expansion from Hamilton County. They will allocate money, $1.3 million for three years for bonds. Sharonville will have to provide matching funds from the hotel taxes. This will take all money from the Northern Cincinnati Convention & Visitors Bureau. Even if the money were not funded for the Convention Center expansion, the Northern Cincinnati Visitors Bureau would be disbanded. (The City does have representation on the board of the Greater Cincinnati Convention & Visitors Bureau with Will Greiner and Mark Scutte.) They (Hamilton County) do not want to have two bureaus in Hamilton County. Since things have begun to take shape, the City will have to move quickly with design and plans for the expansion.
Ted Mack said he received a phone call from Janey Kattelman about tabling the public records legislation. The resolution needs more tweaking. They are down to the final rounds of interviews for the Health Commissioner’s position. They had 90 applicants apply and have rounded them down to three.
Christine Johnson said Sharonville’s Administration met with the representatives of the passenger rail service. They may put a stop in Northern Hamilton County. The group was supportive of the use of the grade crossing for passenger rail service.
Bob Fisher noted that there was a bid opening for the HVAC (Heating, Ventilating,
and Air Conditioning) unit for the Recreation Center. The bids were lower than
expected which was a substantial savings for the City. OKI (Ohio-
Sue Koetz provided her annual report for the Recreation Department. She spoke about the department’s new program tracker software/program. It is a registration and pass management system. It is an important tool for the department as it tracks revenue and attendance. It also strengthens security measures. The staff will have badges as will vendors. Recreation members will have to carry membership cards. The new pool passes for 2010 will have a bar code that they can be scanned as they enter.
Ms. Koetz spoke about the new programs that the Recreation Center have offered as more and more people vacation less and tend to spend more on entertainment close to home. The department is trying to keep them affordable and safe. They use a variety of sources for funding to help defray costs of the Recreation programs. Ms. Koetz ended her report with how proud she is of her staff and managers.
Kevin Hardman spoke about the request he had to move the April 14 meeting. They will not move that meeting but may need to move the last meeting in April (the 28th) or the first meeting of May (the 12th). He also noted that one of the ordinances (employee medical plan) on the agenda may need amending before passage.
Martha Cross Funk wished a Happy Birthday to Mark Piepmeier on April 4.
Thomas Keating stated how hard it is to find out information on the Harmony Grove apartments. Richard Osgood talked with the realtor and found out that there has been a buyer. Sharonville has not yet been contacted by the owner to find out what zoning is for the property. The new owner, DMG specialize in renovating apartments. Mr. Keating will try to keep everyone updated.
Chief Schappa was able to provide Council with information gathered by the Police Department regarding the liquor license revoke at Garage Sports Bar and Grill. The place has caused ongoing problems with many if its neighbors. The Police Department has received many calls of complaint about the establishment. The department met several times with the owners, but the problems still exist.
Council passed four ordinances and three resolutions before adjourning.