Cuyahoga Falls City Council holds regular meetings on the second and fourth Mondays of each month. Council committee meetings are held on the first and third Mondays in order to allow councilmembers to publicly discuss pending legislation that will be voted on at regular meetings. The public is free to comment on pending legislation during the allowed time set aside as part of committee meetings.
Finance:
B-1: An ordinance authorizing the mayor to enter into an agreement to provide dispatch and related safety services to the Village of Boston Heights. Law Director Janet Ciotola fielded questions on this legislation, explaining this will be the same as the ordinance recently passed concerning dispatch services with Silver Lake and Munroe Falls and other than the 3% increase in rate will remain the same as the previous contract. It is also set up so that when the regional dispatch center is up and running the contract will terminate and Boston Heights will enter into an agreement with the Council of Governments and join the new dispatch center. The committee voted to bring this ordinance out for a vote from council Monday February 13.
B-2: An ordinance authorizing the director of finance to enter into a contract or contracts, without competitive bidding, with Storm7 Labs, LLC for the replacement of the City’s primary network switch. The city’s IT director Josh Kington told the committee that the current switch was purchased new in 2016 and is reaching the end of its lifespan. He considers this to be the core of the current network infrastructure and it is important that it be as up to date as possible. The committee voted to bring this ordinance out for a vote from council Monday February 13.
B-3: An ordinance authorizing the director of public service to enter into a contract or contracts with Smart Energy Water for service and support for the electrical division electronic work order system. Rod Troxell from Electric Services stated this that this ordinance that will allow his department to renew, as he described it, a very good software package that has been in use by his staff for the last 5 years. It has allowed the electric department to go paperless with their work order system and thus becoming more efficient. Cost for this will be $17,850 per year. The committee voted to bring this ordinance out for a vote from council next Monday.
Public & Industrial Improvements:
B-4:An ordinance authorizing the director of public service to enter into a contract or contracts, according to law, for the improvement of Portage Trail Extension West, from State Road to Northampton Road. City Engineer Tony Demasi started off with a little history of this project that began in 2016 with design and had now progressed to where we are at today with bids opened and the construction project that includes a walking path, turning lanes and sidewalks plus widening and repaving Portage Trail Extension from State Rd the Northampton Rd. Karvo Construction came in as the lowers and best bidder at approximately $5 million and the project is slated to be finished by Fall of 2024. The committee voted to bring this ordinance out for a vote from council Monday February 13.
B-5:An ordinance authorizing the director of public service to enter into a contract or contracts, according to law, for the construction of a new electrical division building and warehouse at 222 Cochran Road. Another city project that has been in the works for quite some time was presented by Rod Troxell from the electric department. Seven bids were received and the winning bid was awarded to Site Builders, who has worked with the city on other projects and have a good record with the city. Some of the features of the building will be roof construction that will have 50% of its capacity supporting solar cells, and will also have to capacity to add more in the future, another element featured in the design is tying into the Cochran Road storm water project. The building has a $13.8 million price tag (and it came in under budget) and is slated to be completed by July 2024. The committee voted to bring this ordinance out for a vote from council Monday February 13.
Public Affairs:
A-155: An ordinance amending the traffic control file by providing for installation of various traffic control devices. City Engineer Tony Demasi stated this allows the change of the signs that pertain to school bus parking and student pick-up to be changed near DeWitt Elementary School. The committee voted to bring this ordinance out for a vote from council next Monday.
B-6:An ordinance amending Exhibit “A” of Ordinance No. 132-2021 to incorporate the position and pay grade classification for the non-bargaining position of Electric General Foreperson. Once again Rod Troxell said this legislation will formally create the foreman position in the electric shop and allow the current foreman to move into the position of substation foreman. This change was discussed last December during budget. The committee voted to bring this ordinance out for a vote from council Monday February 13.
