Richwood Village Council held a short meeting Monday night to discuss three resolutions.
After announcing the first resolution, Mayor Scott Jerew stated that he did not want to make this resolution, but after explaining it to council members, felt like it was necessary to bring before council.
The resolution was to declare a state of emergency due to the COVID-19 Pandemic and expanding the village administrator’s authority during the state of emergency.
Jerew said that in case of a major emergency that would affect the village, if the village was to declare a state of emergency, then the would qualify for any federal money that might be available to assist the village. He mentioned that if a municipality is principally concerned with eligibility for aid, the declaration of emergency appears to be a “better to have it than not” solution.
Jerew said the village of Richwood has been fortunate during the COVID-19 pandemic and he wants to keep it that way.
The second resolution council discussed was authorization for the village to apply for, accept, and enter into a cooperative agreement for the planning, design and construction of a water plant project between the village of Richwood and The Ohio Water Development Authority and declaring it an emergency.
Council has discussed the need to begin the process of planning and designing for a new water plant in the next few years. In declaring this as an emergency, it will allow Access Engineering the opportunity to begin searching for grants for the building of a new water plant. It will also be able to obtain a loan from the Ohio Water Development Authority. Jerew said this emergency declaration is necessary for the beginning planning stage to apply for grants to help alleviate the burden on village coffers.
The third resolution was for a temporary COVID-19 policy for village employees. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has identified individuals that are at a “higher risk,” for more serious complications from COVID-19, so the Occupational Safety and Health Agency (OSHA) has established each employer’s “general duty,” to keep workers safe through this health crisis.
At-risk definition is any employee that is 65 or older; any employee who has a serious underlying medical condition to include, but not limited to heart disease, diabetes, lung disease, or a weakened immune system due to a chronic condition. This criteria is not meant to discriminate against any employee, which is fully voluntary to the employees.
Council members Reddy Brown and Laurie Eliot-Shea shared a proposed plan on planting trees, but other council recommended village solicitor Alison Boggs look over the plan before announcing any decisions. The tree commission plans to meet the second Monday of each month at 6:30 p.m. prior to the regular council meeting, which begins at 7 p.m. More information will be released regarding planting anything in the village tree lawn.