By Noell Wolfgram Evans

In attendance were Council Members Bob Post, Jim Iona, John Impellizzeri, John Hegnauer, Al Prince, Dina Edwards and Council President Ross Widenor. 

Also attending were Police Chief Steve Dunton, Clerk of Council Misty Smith, Law Director Tom Kostoff, Public Works Director Jim Bowery and Erin Bickar representing the finance department.

Council Member Hegnauer and Mayor Allen Mavrides arrived late. 

The meeting was called to order by Widenor, who then asked Smith to lead the assembled in the Pledge of Allegiance.

Impellizzeri introduced a motion to excuse Hegnauer, who was going to be late to the meeting. The motion passed unanimously.

Widenor next introduced the May 7 standing committee meeting minutes, which were approved unanimously without comment. When Widenor introduced the May 7 regular council meeting minutes, Impellizzeri offered a correction. He stated that the vote totals on the survey acceptance were incorrect. The minutes listed the final vote count as 5-3 when Impellizzeri stated that the total was actually 4-3. This was confirmed and the minutes were approved as corrected.

The mayor’s report was next on the agenda, but the mayor was not yet in attendance, as he was attending a meeting regarding school facilities. 

Kostoff next gave his report which consisted of the dates (May 27 and June 3) when he would next have open hours for residents.

Widenor followed with the council president's report. He shared that he was made aware of an opportunity for local lawmakers to attend a two-day meeting with congressional leaders from Northeast Ohio. He would provide details to any council member who was interested.

EDG (Environmental Design Group) is hosting a free seminar on the topic of how to obtain funds for capital design programs. Edwards offered to look into attending on behalf of the council.

Widenor also announced that a citywide survey would be launching soon and a previously scheduled EPA meeting was being moved to June 10.

Impellizzeri presented for the Finance Committee, although the committee offered no report at this time as they were currently investigating a “minor dispute of $100.” The committee did request the adoption of resolution 2025-22, which would transfer funds needed to pay for previously approved work. The next finance/audit committee meeting is scheduled for June 17.

Post provided a report of the Public Safety Committee. There is not yet a projected date or cost estimate for road repairs. Finance is currently working on how upgrades to street lighting may be accomplished, and there are no updates to traffic cameras.

Dunton reported that since the last meeting, citations are down but arrests and calls are up. There have been 51 incident reports and 15 criminal reports. There were seven misdemeanor arrests and no felony charges.

For the Parks and Recreation Department, Prince reported that their last event, “Creatures of the Night” was “a really good presentation but sparsely attended.” Prince believes this is due to awareness, and the committee is looking at ways to increase future engagement.

Prince announced that Summerfest will be held July 27 from 2-5 p.m. Dairy Queen is donating ice cream bars, and the Bookmobile will be one attraction. They are currently considering entertainment options. Plans are also underway for Fallfest. The committee is also finalizing a policy concerning the purchase of Memorial Park Benches.

As part of the report for the Planning Committee, Impellizzeri announced that a development company is looking into building 17 new homes on the west side of state Route 91. They have not yet scheduled time before the Planning Committee to discuss their proposed development. 

Mavrides arrived and shared his updates on the various meetings and city-wide events he has attended since the last council meeting. He shared an update from the school facilities planning meeting he had just attended. The school board is considering five different facility options and still deciding if they want to pursue putting a bond proposal on the ballot.

At this point, two residents spoke during the public comment time. The first asked several questions to which Widenor had to remind her that this was not a “Q&A period.” The second resident offered his support for the abolishment of the police department. His comment came after he witnessed multiple speeders in a school zone passing police cruisers with no follow up.

Following the public comments, two resolutions were brought up. 2025-21 would recognize June as “Pride Month.” Impellizzeri proposed a suspension of the rules for the readings of this resolution. Prince seconded. Post questioned why the rules would be suspended and a discussion commenced over what constitutes an emergency (which was used for the rule suspension proposal). A vote was called for the rule suspension and Edwards, Widenor,  Impellizzeri, Hegnauer and Prince voted yes. Post and Iona voted no. A vote of 5 to 2 meant that the motion to suspend failed and a first reading was held.

Resolution 2025-22 to increase appropriates was next brought before council. Impellizzeri again proposed a suspension of the rules for the readings of this resolution. That motion passed unanimously. A motion was then made to adopt the resolution and it passed unanimously.

Resolution 2025-18, which declares the necessity of assessing the cost of street lighting, was introduced for a second reading.

There was no old business to discuss. Under new business, council discussed a question brought by Edwards as to who might be able to take up a volunteer role on the Main Street Committee. She had been contacted by a high school student and a Stow resident with interest in joining the committee. Widenor said “I do like the idea of having a youth resident,” while Mavrides suggested the Stow resident be invited to participate as a non-voting member.