Council appoints three to village positions

January 25, 2012

MINSTER — On Jan. 17, the Minster Village Council approved the appointment of three new people to village boards and
commissions.
Steve Dircksen was appointed to the rail authority, while Jean Hinker and Steve Bruns have been named to the zoning board.
“I think they’ll make good assets,” said Minster Village Administrator Don Harrod.
The appointments were passed by council member Paul Enneking and seconded by council member Craig Oldiges.
At the Jan. 3 council meeting, council member Steve Kitzmiller mentioned the Minster Board of Education’s desire to rent out the former elementary school building.
Kitzmiller asked if any council members have heard any feedback on the idea, and Harrod said a woman had called and said she has a group that would like to use the building, if available.
“Nobody wants to see the building go away and we can’t see that happening, but at the same time. … it’d be nice to see it be able to be sold to some college branch campus or somebody like that to use it for classes (but) I don’t think there’s been an interest there,” said Kitzmiller.
“The school has made it very clear that they (no longer have) a use for that and it would be nice for a community building, but it’s going to take some big money to make it what we need to make it.”
Kitzmiller noted that the building does not have central air conditioning and that the village is still paying for its utilities.
“That is an expense that we’re going to have to deal with year-in and year-out,” said Kitzmiller.
Council member Tom Herkenhoff also voiced some concerns about some large potholes in the portion of Fourth Street between Main and Garfield streets.
“(Village crews) were out there this morning trying to fill them in,” said Harrod. “They usually go out two or three times a week to try and smooth out potholes, fill in potholes.”
Harrod also suggested the potential of adding a “rough road sign” to that portion of Fourth Street.
In his administrator’s report, Harrod said that Brumbaugh Construction has completed installing the communication line conduit and water line along Forth Street up to Garfield
Street.
“So this will pretty well wrap up the Fourth Street project for this winter,” said Harrod, noting that he expects work to resume in mid-to-late
March.
Peterson continues its progress on the wastewater treatment plant. They are currently installing the installation on the walls of the operations and headworks buildings and will soon be installing siding on the buildings. Most of the underground piping has already been installed.
Dayton Power and Light has finished installing a 69kV breaker on their section of the north substation.
“It’s completely done. It will operate the way we want it to now,” said Harrod. “That project’s wrapped up finally after three or four years.”
Harrod also mentioned that the parks department has repainted the floor of the bath house at the swimming pool and has also begun work on installing new steps for the high dive.
“We’ve elected to replace the steep steps on the diving board with something that has a greater incline,” Harrod wrote in his report.
The council also approved $182,149.03 in invoices.
The next Minster Village Council meeting will be held on Tuesday, Feb. 7 at 6:30 p.m.