Mayor Tim Howard told Village Council members that the financially the Village is not in great shape but “good shape and solid” in his remarks during the annual budget review during the organizational meeting on Tuesday, January 8, 2019.

Howard noted the support of the Village staff by saying “we appreciate what the staff has done to be conservative in spending”. 

Members elected Rick Hanna to serve as council president this year.  They also agreed that they would open up the various boards that are served by Enon residents for interested individuals to serve.  Contact the Village offices for a list of open seats 864-7870.  The list includes the Board of Zoning Appeals and other resident lead boards.

During the regular meeting, Kristy Thome reported that the Village water tower on Main Street repairs have been delayed as the part dates back to 1958.  The part is expected to be installed this Friday.  The only disruption to service has been the garage owned by the Village and the Enon Relief building.

The administration is in the process of getting quotes for a new laptop and software to operate the water meter reading system.  Thome noted that the new equipment will enhance the process and allow crews to locate malfunctions to a meter quickly and allow the reading time to be cut significantly.

Mayor Howard noted that this will better serve the customers of the water department.  The cost is estimated at $12,000.

Enon Police Chief Lew Wilcox reported that his department will be looking at a new cruiser this year.  The process of obtaining bids for council will begin.  The department has a rotation in place for new equipment and it is time according to the report.

Rick Hanna suggested that the Public Safety Committee will need to hold a meeting in February.  No date has been set but it most likely will be prior to a regular meeting.

Mayor Howard recognized the accomplishment of Wayne Hensley who passed his “operator one” license exam in late December.  This provides the Village with a trained and licensed operator for the water plant.  Hensley studied for the test and prepared by taking courses for the certification noted Howard who said “we are very proud of Wayne” confirming that this is a new career for the gentleman.

Thome reported that the village will be working with the Clark County Transportation Coordinating Committee to apply for a grant to proceed to phase II of the Main Street lighting project.  The funds would not be available for 2-3 years, however the last grant took 5 years to acquire.

The hope is to receive funding for new traffic lights that would be programmed to recognize the traffic flow and change as needed to accommodate volume.  They would also have a battery backup in case of power outages.

In addition there would also be additional street lights that would extend the ones installed in 2018.

Howard reported along with Thome on the Clark County Engineers plans for Enon-Xenia.  Jon Burr has received funding to begin a 2.7 million dollar project to upgrade the bridge over Mud Run along with improvements to the drains and storm sewers in the area of the new school.  The grant also includes the addition of sidewalks and resurfacing.  The funds that are currently available for design and the plan is to have the work done in 2021.

The Village will be accepting nominations for Citizen of the Year and Young Citizen of the Year until February 14, 2019.  This would be for the 2018 honor open to any area residents, you do not have to live in the Village to be nominated.

The ceremony is being moved to the Church of God West Enon which allows for ADA access and a larger space for the event this year.

Nomination forms will be available at the Government Center starting this week.

The Village Council will continue to meet the second and fourth Tuesday of each month beginning at 7 pm.  There is a public address portion for the meeting and all are welcome to attend.