Following the opening, pledge of allegiance to the flag, and approval of June 6th’s meeting meeting, the Mayor began his communications report. The Town of Grantsville is still in need of an officer to be hired, and with the news that Deputy C.J. Myers has accepted a position in Roane County, the city is in even greater need for coverage. One interview has been scheduled but the City is still seeking application.
Mayor Petrovsky recently spoke to Fred Hypes, of Dunn Engineering about the need to have Guide Rails installed for the Sewer Department. The costly installation would require grant funding, for which the Mayor requested the council to consider, which was done later in the meeting and approved for a grant pursuit by MORVC and Dunn Engineering.
Jared Anderson, appearing by phone on behalf of WVU and working with Calhoun County to adopt a comprehensive plan, requested the Council’s approval of the current plan. The Mayor had a few change requests with regard to language within the plan, the number of current city staff and an addition of T-Mobile in the list of broad band providers. Anderson made the changes requested and stated that if further changes were made by the Comprehensive Planning Committee it would be brought back before the council for approval. Cheryl Sturms made a motion to approve the plan with amendments, and the motion was seconded by Judy Powell. All were in favor.
The Mid Ohio Valley Regional Council brought a resolution before the Council for an application and change order. Draw Down 12 was for Orders Construction in the amount of $56,070 and Dunn Engineering in the amount of $4,445.82. Judy Powell made a motion to approve, with a motion second by Linda Staton, and Council approval.
A second change order was on the current Water Project with the new contract price as $3,812,583.77. A motion to approve was made by Cheryl Sturms and seconded by Linda Staton. All were in favor. When asked why it had to be changed, the council was informed that the labor and material costs to change out the raw water pump had changed .
With regard to the Sewer Project, MOVRC presented draw down number 8 which was in the amount of $27,751 to Dunn Engineering. Cheryl Sturms made a motion for the draw down and Linda Staton, seconded it. All was in favor.
A matter of interest and great concern for the Grantsville Community has been the Rainbow Hotel which is not only a city eye sore, but also a danger to community residents in it’s dilapidated state. With regard to the project of demolition of the old structure, MORVC requested another year’s extension to complete the project. The Mayor is hoping that the project will be done by Christmas 2022, but a year long extension to June 30, 2023, was approved by the council to insure the funding would continue.
Jane Carpenter spoke to the Council on behalf of WAG (Welfare of Animals Group) concerning the problem of ferrel cats in the Grantsville area. Mrs. Carpenter said that there were as many as 100 ferrel cats from the Mill Street to Laundromat area. The number of cats are creating issues with more reproduction, inbreeding, and disease as well as costing those who feed them considerable money. She requested the Town’s verbal support of WAG’s efforts to trap and release the animals.
WAG Trapper, Jim Morgan, traps the cats, where they are then taken to a veterinarian to be spayed, neutered, vaccinated and treated for any medical issues. Following treatment they’re returned to the community that they were trapped from to keep additional cat populations from moving in. This effort is impeded by people who dump unwanted animals in the city, especially during events such as the Calhoun Wood Festival. WAG works to raise awareness of the issue of unwanted animals and help with the costs of those who choose to feed the homeless animals.
WAG also asked the Town Council to notify residents of the trapping events to insure that their pets are marked properly and not accidentally picked up. The Mayor thanked WAG for their efforts and assured their cooperation including using the alert system to notify the community and putting the trapping dates on water bills.
The Council approved the hiring of a part time water employee to prevent the issue faced with the retirement of Alan Bell. David Johnson worked two years as they only certified operator until Craig Gherke received his certification. Johnson plans to retire in 2023 and an operator needs to be in training prior to that event.
Mayor Petrovsky asked the Council and received a $10,000 deposit out of ARPA funds to cover for lost wages and revenue in the sewer department since 2020.
The next City Council Meeting will be August 1st, 2022.
The full Town Council Meeting can be viewed from a Facebook Live Video on Ridgeview News Facebook Page.
