St. Albans Township/Alexandria Merger Commission Meeting

Agenda/Minutes 6/19/2024

1. Call to order, pledge of allegiance

Chairperson Carianne Meng calls to Order the St. Albans Township/Alexandria Merger Commission Meeting of June 16, 2024 at 7:04PM.

Note: these meetings are for the Merger Commission to review findings and to draw up the conditions for a merger.

2. Committee Member Roll Call:  

Baer: Present / Not Present 

Barnes: Present / Not Present 

Burton: Present / Not Present

Lodder: Present / Not Present  

Meng: Present / Not Present 

Robertson: Present / Not Present 

Schiller: Present / Not Present 

Taylor: Present / Not Present

Thorpe: Present / Not Present  

Zanks: Present / Not Present 

Additional Attendees: 

M. Washington, D. Lees, M. Fitch, J. Morrison, Jacob Brooks

3. Review and Approval of Minutes 

Minutes from St. Albans Township/Alexandria Merger Commission Meeting 5/15/2024

Barnes made a motion; seconded by Baer, to approve the 5/15/2024 minutes.  All

in favor? Chair declares motion failed / carried. 

4. Old Business  

                  Drafting Merger Conditions

REMINDER re: road mileage: Township Mileage: 26, County Mileage: 24, State Mileage: 13, Village Mileage: 10.035

5. New Business

Plank Law fee agreement proposal – tabled

We are reaching out to new council with the Plank law firm at this time; original contact is unavailable.

Request for extension

Section 709.462 | Vote on merger conditions – agreement by majority of subdivision members – term of commission.

(D) Regardless of whether a merger commission succeeds in reaching an agreement, the commission shall cease to exist on the ninetieth day preceding the next general election occurring after the election of the members of the commission, unless the commission requests an extension of time from the legislative authority of each political subdivision involved and each of those legislative authorities approves the extension. This extension of time may be only until the ninetieth day preceding the second general election occurring after the election of the members of the commission. If the commission ceases to exist under this division, no further petitions shall be filed under section 709.45 of the Revised Code proposing a merger of any or all of the political subdivisions that were the subjects of the petition considered by the commission for at least three years after the date the commission ceases to exist.

Baer made a motion; seconded by Barnes, to approve/decline the request for extension until the ninetieth day preceding the second general election occurring after the election of the members of the commission (August 1, 2025) in accordance with ORC 709.462. 

Barnes Y
Baer Y

Robertson Y

Burton Y

Schiller Y

Meng Y

All in favor? Chair declares motion failed / carried. 

Alternative Meeting Schedule

In lieu of an extension, the Merger Commission can meet every Wednesday through July (July 3, 10, 17, 24, 31). In order to meet quorum, we need 3 Commission members from the Township and 3 Commission members from the Village present at each meeting.

June 26: Barnes, Baer, Robertson, Burton, Schiller, No Meng

July 3: 

July 10:

July 17: No Baer possible

July 24: No Robertson

July 31: 

Burton made a motion; seconded by Robertson, to meet each Wednesday in June (26) July (July 3, 10, 17, 24, 31). 

• Jean Morrison to request Alexandria Methodist.
• Lodder to make public notice about dates. (complete 6/19/24)
• Meng to send request to Village Council (July 2) and Township Trustees (July 9). Current deadline is 4PM August 7.  (Complete 6/20/24)

-Finance update (Dean): No earned income when you rent land to a farmer. 

Question from Mike Washington: Could earned income turn to unearned income in the future? Earned income is W2 income.

-Dean created a template for projected estimated revenues. Number for 2022, 2023 and can project forward to 2026, but not completely accurate. Also working on a template for assets.

-Working with Brad Cottrel to get the tax calculator working to see what your taxes will be, what would drop off. 

	VILLAGE	TOWNSHIP
Property Tax with levies, etc.	No change	Will change
Earned Income Tax	No change	+1%

Comment from citizen to please address CAUV in fiscal areas of document

Significant discussion of finances and income for newly combined village

Drafting Merger Conditions 

• Discussion of forms of government
  • Mayor 4 years, Council alternating 3/3yr. 
  • Initial Council would be in place for 1 year to draft the new Village charter
  • 3 council members appointed initially for 2 years // 3 appointed for 1 year term – who will be appointed? Need to discuss with folks.
  • Lean on current government officials
  • Charter commission on the ballot – May 2026
  • Charter on ballot – May 2027
  • November 2027 municipal election falls under the charter
  • A charter allows a municipality to establish rules within an area. 

Discussed and agreed on the following election cycle

Appointed Initial Council	Nov 2026 Election	Nov 2027 Election	Nov 2028 Election	Nov 2029 Election	Nov 2030 Election
2-yr Mayor		1 elected
3-yr Councilmember (x2)			2 seats elected
2-yr Councilmember (x2)		2 seats elected
1-yr Councilmember (x2)	2 seats elected				2 seats elected

Village administrator position discussed; charter may address the role of administrator.
Fiscal Officer may be voted upon.

Discussion of payment, voluntary, etc. 

General Updates:

6. Citizen Comments (3-minute time limit)

M. Fitch: How will we put merger detail out to citizens?
Recommend a public open house with stations to discuss different topics 

7. Meeting Announcements 

The next meeting will be held on: Wednesday, June 26 at 7PM, location TBD.

Future meetings are:
June 26, 2024
 July  3, 2024
July 10, 2024
July 17, 2024
July 24, 2024
July 31, 2024.
August 21, 2024
September 18, 2024
October 16, 2024
November 20, 2024
December 18, 2024
January 15, 2025
February 19, 2025
March 19, 2025
April 16, 2025
May 21, 2025
June 18, 2025

8. Adjournment 

Barnes made a motion; seconded by Burton, to adjourn.
All in favor? Chair declares motion carried / failed. 

Chairperson Meng declares the meeting adjourned at: 9:42PM