By Julie Erickson

Attendees:

Jeffrey Anzevino, Mayor

Michael Bird, President of Council (Ward 4)

Kyle Brezovec, Council Member (At large)

Samantha D’Eramo, Council Member (At large)

Patricia Goetz, Council Member (Ward 1)

Skylar Sutton, Council Member (Ward 3)

Amanda Weinstein, Council Member (At large)

Dan White, Council Member (Ward 2)

The meeting was called to order at 7:30 p.m., followed by the Pledge of Allegiance and roll call with all seven members of council present.

The meeting minutes for the May 19 council meeting and the minutes for May 26 council workshop were approved as provided.

Anzevino proclaimed June 12-13, 2026, as Hudson Festival Days. The Hudson Home and Garden Tour, the Clothesline Art Show and the Hudson Ice Cream Social all took place, and Screen on the Green launched its summer lineup with a showing of “The Wizard of Oz.” Members from the various organizations sponsoring the festival events then stepped forward to accept from the mayor the proclamation.

Hudson resident Mike Juppe, a former chemist and chemical engineer, again addressed the council with his concerns regarding possible chemical soil contamination at the previous Joann Fabrics site.

Prior to Joann Fabrics being located at the property, it was occupied from 1957 to 1988 by GM Terex, which operated at that site as a manufacturer of large earth-moving equipment. In April 1988, Terex submitted a request to the Hudson fire department for permission to remove approximately 29 above or below ground storage tanks containing between 1,000 to 8,000 gallons each of manufacturing chemicals. Seven tanks contained diesel fuel, 10 tanks oil, one tank ethylene glycol and five tanks contained hazardous waste.

TCE (trichloroethylene) was identified as one of the chemicals Terex used as a degreaser in the paint room. TCE is a volatile, non-flammable organic chemical that has been used primarily as an industrial metal degreaser. Juppe emphasized the risks associated with TCE, including serious health concerns like cancer risk, and the potential for spills or improper disposal of the chemical, causing it to seep into the soil, resulting in groundwater contamination. Due to numerous lawsuits nationwide of municipal water supplies contaminated by TCE, the EPA issued a final rule on the use of TCE in December 2024, with most industrial and commercial uses becoming prohibited as of September 15, 2025, and subject to limited compliance-date extensions for certain specific uses.

For this reason, Juppe has concerns for the Terex site and the Clinton Crossing site being used, at a future date, for residential housing, unless extensive soil testing first takes place to eliminate any possible existing soil contamination or any existing remaining tanks. Juppe did state he is awaiting additional information from the Ohio EPA on the disposition and confirmation of contents of the tanks.

A different Hudson resident addressed council regarding the reversal of his criminal lawsuit and the denial of his civil lawsuit and go forward action.

Goetz shared that “people were actually doing what they were supposed to” regarding the new traffic lanes in front of Acme Plaza.

White shared that he attended the EAC meeting and that they will continue to review the capital budget and will collaborate on upcoming city events. White also wanted to remind all that the Hudson city market opened June 6.

D’Eramo congratulated Linda Sucheski on her recent retirement and thanked her for her service to the community as the founding director of Saint Mary Preschool.

Brezovec responded to Juppe’s question about why council members did not read into the record at the May 19 City Council meeting Juppe’s email outlining his concerns about possible soil contamination at the former Terex site, which he reiterated in his comments tonight. Brezovec said it is up to the discretion of the council if council reads into the record a citizen’s submitted email and he could not speak to why none of the council members read into the record Juppe’s email.

Brezovec also responded to Juppe’s question about why the former Joann Fabrics site did not undergo the same extensive testing as the Phase 2 property, now known as Clinton Crossings. He explained that the difference was due to property ownership: the city owned the Clinton Crossings property but did not own the Joann Fabrics site.

Anzevino said he would investigate Juppe’s concerns about soil samples at Phase 2. He stated that the city would investigate the matter, out of respect for those concerns, and confirm that appropriate due diligence has been completed if it has not already been done.

Weinstein attended the Economic Growth Board that met May 28 and the board is continuing to research how similar communities run their building department to uncover efficiencies in their process regarding securing building permits. She also shared that a large employer is considering holding a city-wide hiring event.

A public “Meet Your City Managers” event was to be held at the Hudson Library on June 3 and

Western Reserve Academy planned to hold its bicentennial celebration from June 4 through June 6.

Council discussed appointing Marshal Pitchford as acting solicitor and special counsel. Goetz asked whether the appointment should proceed through the appointment process or be moved to the consent agenda and declared an emergency measure. Bird said the matter should remain under appointments rather than be moved to the consent agenda. The appointment passed by a 4-3 vote.

Steve Lyons was appointed to a partial term on the HCTV advisory committee through March 20, 2028. The appointment was approved by a vote of six in favor, with one abstention.

All consent agenda items were approved except Resolution 26-95, which Goetz pulled for further discussion. Resolution 26-95 would have amended Resolution 26-84 to direct the city manager to engage a professional recruiting firm to recruit in-house counsel. After discussion of the costs and potential benefits of using a recruiting firm, Resolution 26-95 failed by a 4-3 vote.

The meeting adjourned at 9 p.m.