VALLEYVIEW VILLAGE COUNCIL CONSIDERS LEVY FOR NOVEMEBER BALLET

The first order of business at the April 3rd meeting of the Valleyview Village Council was the consideration of the resignation of Councilman John Shaw. Councilman Shaw's letter gave no reason for the resignation only that the resignation was effective April 1, 2006. The Village Council voted 5-0 to accept Councilman Shaw's resignation. The Council announced that they would hold a special meeting on April 13th to vote to fill the seat from any residents interested in filling the seat.

Much of the meeting centered on budget cuts and reprioritizing budget items. The Council has considered putting off purchasing cameras for the police cruisers, replacing the Village mower and delaying the purchasing of new playground equipment for the park. The Council would be using the funds for the cameras to pay for the installation and service fees for the in car computers for the Police Cruisers. This is needed to be in compliance with the Sheriff's Department who handles the dispatching for the Village. It will aid the police officers in getting information during a traffic stop or respond to a call in the Village or surrounding area.

On legislation considered by the Council, it voted 5-0 not to pay a request from the Mayor's Court Clerk to be reimbursed for mileage on her personal vehicle that took place before the Council instituted a travel policy. The Council also voted 5-0 to extend the contract of the Village Solicitor for two months till July 31, 2006.

Introduced for its first reading was a resolution to place an operating levy on the November ballet. The resolution proposed a 5.5 mil levy to replace a 7.0 mil levy that would be expiring at the end of 2006. This would increase the taxes on a $100,000 home by $14 a year based on the recently enacted property values determined by the County Auditor. The operating levy would be used for operating expenses and fire protection services. The Fiscal Officer provided estimates on revenue for the coming years that showed that the current fire protection levy and fire savings account would not be able to meet the cost of the future fire contracts by 2009. The Village Council stated that they wanted the input of the residents, but attendance has been sparse at recent meetings.

Notes Continued

The Property and Planning Committee announced that the Village Easter Egg Hunt would be held on Saturday April 8th at 10am at the Village Hall. The Rain Date would be April 15th at the same time. The Committee also announced that a Committee Meeting would be held on Thursday April 13th at 6:00 following the Special Council Meeting scheduled for that same time. The Committee would be discussing the upcoming Keep Valleyview Beautiful Day and getting input from residents on the type of playground equipment to be purchased for the park. The Committee would begin working will businesses on the Westside seeking donations to help with the purchase of the new playground equipment. Residents are encouraged to attend the meeting and give their input.

The Streets and Public Safety Committee announced that they would be meeting on Monday April 10th at 5pm at the Village Hall.

The Finance Committee announced that the State Auditor?’s Office would not be performing the audit of the Village, but has assigned Valleyview and three other Villages (one of which is the Village of Obetz) to work to together to pick a private company to perform the audit. The books of the Village are required to be audited every two years by State Law. All four Villages must agree on a single company to provide the auditing services. The Fiscal Officer, Linda Stoner, stated that she would be contacting some companies directly to see if they can perform the audit and not be a part of the auditing pool with the other villages. Proposed costs for the audit would be $8,500 as a part of the pool and was considerably higher than the costs of prior audits performed by the state with the most recent audit from 2002-2003 costing approximately $6,000. The cost seemed high and the Village would look to see what other services are available to try and save money. The Fiscal Officer also reported the total of all funds for the Village to be $394,882.77.