Aurora CIty Council & COW - 5/27/25

Aurora, Ohio, City Council and Committee of the Whole
​May 27, 2025

Committee of the Whole (COW): The meeting was called to order at 6:00 pm by Chairman John Kudley with Council members present: Reva Barner, Brad Duguay, Peter French, Sarah Grdina Gilmore, George Horvat, Dennis Kovach and John Seitz. Scott Wolf  was absent. There were 10 City Officials and Employees present. There were 4 citizens present.

Minutes from May 12, 2025 were adopted with G. Horvat, R Barner and D. Kovach abstaining.

Finance Director’s Report: Mr. Clymer explained that “the legislation to approve our 2026 Tax Budget – while the document contains the word “budget”, please do not misconstrue it as an operating budget document or proposal. The Tax Budget is a tool used by the County budget Commission to determine the amount of funding we receive from property taxes and local government funding. The 2026 numbers provided in it are estimates taken from our five-year forecast and are not intended to represent actual budgetary proposals from the city’s administration.” Fund balances remain in a healthy position with $45,447,600 unencumbered in all funds, and $15,378.963 in the General Fund.

 There were 4 Ordinances proposed for action that evening on 1st Reading:

• An Ordinance amending Employees Generally for new and seasonal hires.
• An Ordinance selecting the bid of C&J Contractors, Inc. in an amount not to exceed $473,138.60 to provide demolition services at the Aurora Park at Geauga Lake property. 
• An Ordinance accepting the proposal and renewing the city’s property and casualty insurance policies with Selective Insurance Company and Cincinnati Insurance Company for the policy period June 1, 2025-June 1, 2026 through Wichert Insurance Services, Inc., the total premium for which shall be $241,742.00. Ben Sutton and his associate said this is still a hard market with weather events, fire, liability claims and all premiums are up. This quote is a moderate 9% increase. There is a 10% inflationary increase in property values, 7 net additional vehicles were up 14% and there is more equipment.The policy allows for different carriers for boiler and machinery and Cyber security to search for the best price. The Geauga Lake property has also been added. 
• An Ordinance accepting the proposal of and renewing the current policy with Travelers Insurance Co. for cyber insurance for the policy period of June 1, 2025 – June 1, 2026  through Wichert Insurance Services Inc. in the amount of $26,845.00.

There were 3 Ordinances proposed for 1st Reading:

• An Ordinance authorizing the Mayor to enter into a modification agreement increasing the not to exceed amount from $34,000.00 to $36,000.00 with James G. Zupka, CPA for the completion of the city’s 2024 finalcial audit.
• An Ordinance approving and adopting the tax budget of the City of Aurora for the calendar year 2026 in order to comply with Ohio revised Code 5705.28
• An Ordinance accepting the proposal of Midwest Public Safety in the amount of $21,778.56 for the purchase of GETAC cloud storage for body cameras and dash cameras. 

Miscellaneous: Department Reports Proposal. Discussion continued with some points mentioned: The goal is to increase dialogue, information and discussion. It should be part of the City Council Meeting; It is the Mayor’s responsibility to decide who would be highlighted when e.g. Service, Parks & Rec, Zoning, etc.; Amend Council’s meeting agenda and allow citizens comments at this time; there was general agreement that it was not necessary to rename Mayor’s Report to Mayor’s City Report; Mr. Kudley was thanked for the different proposals and letting the Mayor decide what goes into the report. The Mayor was asked to comment and she said she is willing to expand information but cautioned that there will still be things that will not or cannot be included, everybody won’t suddenly know everything. She appreciated the flexibility and will endeavor to highlight those departments with the most activity in a particular season. Parks and Rec and Service will be called to speak in June. 

Meeting adjourned at 6:41 pm

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City Council (CC):   Council President George Horvat called the meeting to order at 6:46 pm with the Pledge to the Flag of the United States of America. Council members were present and absent as noted in the COW report. There were 10 City Officials and Employees present and 2 people in the gallery.

May 12, 2025 Meeting Minutes were adopted with G. Horvat, R. Barner and D. Kovach abstaining.

Mayor’s Report: The Mayor expanded report called attention to City News: Some Companies in the Industrial Park have been experiencing sporadic power outages and the city is working with First Energy reps to address the problem; The new UTV for the park ranger is being outfitted; Bidding for the salt contract is coming up;  Brush pickup began on April 21 and continue through October; No start date has been given for road paving but by contract will be completed by July 4; The Splash Pad l opened on May 24; The Sunny Lake Boathouse also opened May 24. Grand Marshal nominations for the 4th of July celebration can be made on the city’s website by May 31; Food Truck Wednesdays begin June 11, held on the 2nd and 4th Wednesdays through August from 11:00 a.m. to 2 p.m.; Summer Concerts begin June 12 on the 2nd and 4th Wednesdays through August at 6:30 p.m. at Veterans Memorial Park. Five Sessions of Safety Town will begin June 9, a free program for Aurora residents; Aurora sponsors several assistance programs with applications available on the city’s website or by calling City Hall; The Sidewalk Repair program is resuming with the city sharing the cost with the homeowner of qualifying repairs after the owner’s application to participate in the program; Aurora Trail work is progressing with grading and preparatory base work accomplished and paving to proceed soon. A grand opening is being planned for Saturday June 28 from 11-1. The Mayor thanked the American Legion, the Legion Auxiliary, and the VFW for the Memorial Day Programs and thanks to the Aurora High School Marching Band. A “thank you to all of the Veterans who have given so much to the country”.  In addition to the 2 speeches at the Memorial Day services she also spoke at the Chamber’s “Women of Wisdom” event. Congratulations to Aurora High School Graduates.  Mr Kudley called her attention to the Historic Marker that was moved close to the road while work is being done on the Aurora Trail. The Mayor will check it out and asked Mr. Kudley to contact the appropriate authorities for permission to move the marker. Mr. Kovach, a veteran, thought that the Mayor’s speeches were outstanding.

Law Director’s Report: Mr. DePiero had nothing new to report.
Citizens Comments – None

 Council Remarks – None

Ordinances on 3rd  Reading:

• An Ordinance authorizing the Mayor and Finance Director to compensate the Aurora Board of Education $200,895.00 for its portion of the income tax received from property tax abatements was adopted.

Ordinances on 2nd Reading:

• The 5 Ordinances authorizing to pay for education classes went to 3rd Reading

Ordinances on 1st Reading: 

• The 4 Ordinances proposed for action that evening were adopted with rules suspended. See COW for details.
• The 3 Ordinances proposed on 1st Reading went to 2nd Reading. See COW for details. The Ordinance concerning the Tax Budget had a public hearing set for June 9, 2025.

Citizens Comments: None

Council Members Remarks: R. Barner appreciated the reminder about the back flows that need yearly checking and wanted everyone concerned to be aware of it. She also was impressed that there are 684 veterans interred in the Aurora Cemetery. J. Kudley spoke about the girl’s Softball Team. G. Horvat complimented the Mayor on her Memorial Day speeches, thanked D. Kovach for her Service and thanked J. Kudley for the work he did on the Mayor’s Report proposal.

Meeting adjourned at 7:09 p.m.