REGULAR COUNCIL -
The Mayor called the meeting to order. He then gave the invocation followed by the Pledge of Allegiance.
He then asked for roll call.
Martin- yes;
The Mayor then asked for approval of the agenda. Martin made a motion to approve the agenda. Myers seconded the motion. Roll call all ayes.
The Mayor presented the minutes from the
The Mayor asked for any public questions or statements. Rich Smothers, American Legion Representative took the floor.
Rich passed out a contract between the Legion and the Village concerning their pavilion at the park.
Rich: A few years back the park board came to the American Legion, decided due
to economic times wanted to charge a fee for us to use our pavilion that we
built in 1978. We have document that I
am not sure if it was brought up at that time.
Jonna: yes it was.
Rich: The bottom line is the veterans built that pavilion in 1978 and signed a contract with Council and with the park board and with us saying that for free we would be able to use what we built during Labor Day. A couple years went by and we paid the fees, and the old guys, mostly World War II Vets, got a little cantankerous and decided we are not doing that anymore. The Park Board via council basically decided to farm it between the Eagles and the American Legion. What we want to do is bring it back home, and we are fully willing to give the percentage to the park, because we understand how tough it is, but we want to make it clear that we would want to bring this back home to the vets. They are the guys that built it, they are the ones that signed the contract we don’t want alternate this anymore. We make anywhere between $1,000 and $1500.00 out there and that pays for the liquor license and keeps us going. To keep that farmed out when we provided that is tough, it is hard for us. We are doing pretty good now, but you never know, so what we would like to ask council, the legion voted and wanted me to come up here and ask council to acknowledge this and make sure that they realize that it is the vets
Not this year, it is the Eagles and we understand that, we don’t want to come in at the last minute with a few days left, but for next year and the years after, we want to make sure, that you guys recognize this as a binding document, and if we need to amend something, and you guys draw it up, we will be willing to sign it and pay the fee, but we want to bring that back home, bring it back to where it started, who built it and what it was intended for.
Jonna: I have a question, you are only talking the pavilion, and the Eagles have their own pavilion.
Rich: Yes they do have.
Jonna: Don’t they use their own pavilion?
Rich: No, well this is just here say, what
Cooke: Do the Eagles use the American Legion pavilion?
Rich: Yes, they do every other year. This is just here say, I wasn’t involved, but when we said we are not paying, somebody said if you guys want to do this build your pavilion, donate it or whatever, we will make some concessions, but that is just here say. I don’t know for sure. We all know where the beer tent is at.
Cooke: Has the Legion ever been charged for the use of the pavilion by the park.
Rich: Yes, the first couple years, all of a sudden they said we are going to charge you; Ted Mahl was the commander they did pay.
Cooke: For the use of the pavilion?
Rich: No, it is a fee, it is 25%.
Jonna: For any
Cooke: This contract says nothing about that. This says pavilion use.
Rich: That’s right – it says for free.
Cooke: It says pavilion for free. Steve how do you read this?
Steve Bond: That is a pretty good point.
Cooke: It says nothing about the alcohol sales or the profit you make while you are there.
Rich: It doesn’t say anything about that, at the time they didn’t spell that out. What we are saying we know that since we have been around we have been operating the beer tent. We decided we are going to get this for free. We have a document that says we are going to get this for free.
Cooke: You are going to get the pavilion for free not the sale of alcohol during Labor Day. The use of the pavilion at no charge.
Rich: You can dissect that anyway you want; I am in agreement with you.
Cooke: With anyone at council?
Rich: No the Legion our own guys. I haven’t talked to one sole on council or any other administrative position until right now. But what we want to do, if you want to give us that pavilion for free, that we hope you would understand that we would run the beer tent which is under our liquor license. If you split the hairs and say no, and we will do something else and we will pay our 25%? We are just hopeful that since this has been going on since 1978; you understand that we are going to run the beer tent. If you don’t want to do that for whatever reason that is fine. What we are saying now, we are going to do the beer tent and pay the 25%, and if you say no and not give us the beer tent then we will take the pavilion and do what we want and not pay, because that is what it says. We are hopeful that you understand that it is has been the Legions’ beer tent, it is a matter of splitting hairs, it is up to you guys, we will go whatever way you want to go.
Martin: Where is the Eagles Pavilion?
Jonna: It is the next pavilion after the Legion’s Pavilion. It is on the corner just past the Legions.
Rich: It is not right up in the midway.
Martin: The Eagles use this because it is in a more advantageous place?
Rich: Yes. They knew what was happening during Labor Day.
Martin: For the last how many years has it been rotated between the Eagles and the Legion?
Rich: I would say somewhere between 5or 6 years.
Martin: 10 years?
Rich: No not 10 years, we paid the first two years, the first two years we just went ahead and did it.
Martin: Okay, I am just figuring 1978, that goes back 32 years.
Rich: We had it all the way up to five or six years ago, but then the Village fell under tough times, and needed to raise some more money, they came to the legion and said they wanted to charge 25% and start charging you, and they paid it for the first two years under Ted Mahl, but back at the post there was a lot of complaining about it.
Jonna: You have paid a fee since I have been here.
Rich: No, we have not, we have never paid until Ted Mahl was commander and we got word that the Village wanted to start charging us, and I was at those meetings.
Cooke: So you didn’t pay last year?
Rich: Yes, we paid last year, but what I am saying is up until the point that the Village said we want to start charging you we paid nothing for 25 years for this, but then the Village said we want to start charging you. We went ahead and paid, but then they voted that they didn’t want to do this.
Cooke: I just assumed that the Legion had paid all along.
Rich: If you go back to 1978 until about 2001 we never paid a dime, never, never paid a dime, from 1978 to 2001 or 2002. The last 6 or 7 years we paid, when it was alternating.
Cooke: When it was alternating.
Rich: Yes, what we want to do is bring that pavilion back home to our vets.
Jonna: I was sure you had paid; I will have to check my records to make sure
Rich: From 1978 to 2002 we hadn’t paid a dime that is when the Village came to the Legion and asked them to pay the 25%. The Legion stated they didn’t have to pay and that is when it started alternating.
Myers: Only one organization can sell alcohol out there at a time.
Rich: I don’t know what the Village says about that, but it wouldn’t be advantageous to have two beer tents.
Cooke: I want to know how it came to be alternating.
Jonna: The Legion did not want to pay after a Labor Day; we kept coming up with lesser and lesser money, why I don’t know, so the Legion said we are not paying 25%. Why 25% wasn’t paid, we know they were making money over there, but we kept getting lesser and lesser money. Every concession – in town concession pays – Our Lady of Lourdes and Athletic Boosters, whatever, they all pay a 25% fee. The out of town concessions pay $350.00 flat fee.
Martin: I am a Vet and I feel that any concession out there should pay the same as another, there shouldn’t be any concessions for one certain charity or group.
Rich: From 1978 to 2000 and something they didn’t pay anything. So they were operating under that assumption. What I am saying is we don’t have a problem paying it, what we want to do is bring our pavilion back to us.
Jonna: You are asking for the sole rights to the beer?
Rich: Well, we always had it.
Jonna: I am trying to understand this and get it straight.
Rich: I am saying that is a hair splitting deal, we are asking for sole rights to our pavilion for free, like if you add the beer in we are saying we will pay the 25%.
Jonna: If you have any concession out there you would have to pay the 25%.
Rich: No because we got the pavilion for free.
Jonna: No
Cooke: You got the pavilion not the beer.
Rich: Right so if we do something else we get to use the pavilion for free is what this says.
Cooke: If you are selling something you pay, you get the use of the pavilion.
Myers: It is the profit.
Rich: That is not what that says. It says for free. Read it Steve it says for free.
Steve Bond: I think Stuart is right though, it says you can use it, it doesn’t say anything about selling anything or consenting to selling anything.
Rich: And it doesn’t say anything and it does say anything.
Jonna: Most of our pavilions rent for $40.00.
Rich: It is up to you guys, I already had my attorney look at it, I was hopeful that you could understand that the Vets built that we sold the beer tent, you guys want to split hairs go ahead. But my attorney looked at it and said it was a slam shut case. So it is up to you guys, once again from 1978 to 2000 something we did it for free. We are willing to pay for the beer tent. We just want to bring it back home. If you don’t want to do that then that is fine.
Cooke: Is that how it was, they didn’t pay.
Jonna: I would have to look at the records. I think, in my memory they paid every year.
Rich: I am telling you Stuart, man to man that is exactly how it was. I have been a member of the Legion for 23 years and that is exactly how it was.
Jonna: I was in since 1984 I would say they have paid all along, but I could be wrong.
Rich: You are.
Cooke: I assumed because I knew that every concession had to pay the beer tent paid.
Rich: No, that is not true, we never paid a dime
Rich: No we would give you the 25%
Rich: Well, they want the beer tent, the vote was, and it has always been the beer tent.
They want to do the beer tent. If there is something else we could do to make the most money I would have to take it back to them and find out because we haven’t talked about that.
Cooke: The way I read it is that you won’t get charged the Pavilion rental which is $40.00 rental fee
Rich: It says we won’t’ get charged anything. It says we won’t get charged a fee of any kind.
Cooke: For the Pavilion
Rich: For the Pavilion
Rich: The hope was to get the 25% from the beer tent and we would be willing to do that. You have to understand when that document was architect or drafted it was that we had the beer tent; their mind set is the beer tent is for free. Here we are today and nobody thought about putting in the words beer tent, which we talked about, but we hoped you understood that from 1978 to 2000 that is what it was.
Rich: I am not saying that is a right decision.
Kaufman: Going from 1978 to the current, I would assume that in 1978, it was clear in their mind of the intent, and because of things that have happened from that time to now, brings in a question that needs to be worked out, and in my way of thinking, and if council wants to entertain working out with the Legion in having a current agreement.
Martin: I would think that going back from the 7 or 8 years and have gone and agreed that it was the Eagles, Legion and it has been rotated like that, that they gave a concession, is there a default on this contract because of this. Was a precedent set?
Steve: I think we can write a simple agreement that they can use it, and they will donate back to the village the 25%.
Cooke: I see that agreeable, but we have the Eagles now, they are an organization similar to you that donate back to the Village, what we tell them that they are no longer to sell alcohol.
Rich: Well, it was ours in the beginning, we basically let them in by virtue of saying we didn’t want to pay the fee. From the beginning I think everyone in town knew that we ran the beer tent. I am a member of the Eagles too, and I let a few of their officers know that I was coming up.
Martin: This contract doesn’t state anything about the sale or what you would sell in that pavilion at all. So I to be honest and be fair about the whole thing, the way it has been going I feel a rotation is sufficient, and whatever you do with the pavilion on the year that you don’ have the concession for beer.
Jonna: Can I make a suggestion? Let me go back through my records, cause this was discussed at a previous council meeting, at about the time that was discussed, let me go back through my records, my financial records and get them out to you and then you can set down and have meeting with Richard after Labor Day is over.
Cooke: I think a meeting with everyone involved after Labor Day. Set down and hash this out to everyone’s satisfaction.
Rich: Just go back to 78 Jonna; because I am telling you, I am standing up here saying.
Jonna: I can only go back to 1984
Rich: Okay from 1984 to sometime in 2000 we never paid a dime. That is where the precedent is at. That is where we can say, that is where our teeth is at, we know it was built to sell beer.
Cooke: Did everyone else pay during that time frame and that has been set up.
Jonna: Yes, there is an inside contract.
Cooke: And since 1984 every vendor has paid that.
Jonna: Yes, 25% of profit if you were an in town concession. Except for Dor-Lo, they paid over $1000 every year.
Cooke: We also have to take into consideration the Eagles and Legions donations
through out the year.
Kaufman: I would assume both organizations have their own liquor license; they are not using the Legion’s
Rich: No, we have to apply for an off site permit.
Kaufman: What if both organizations wanted to furnish that.
Rich: Personally myself I have no problem with that. What I am representing is that Pavilion being the Legions. If they wanted to come up with something those guys, I mean they knew I was coming
Kaufman: Each organization has their own liquor license. Is there anything that stops them from both selling beer at the same time.
Rich: It is a matter of accounting and workforce. It is very tough to get someone to work all those days and shifts. Um, their last Eagles meeting or conversation that I had, they don’t’ have enough signed up work it. With our young guys and our SAL we have enough. I have no problem, I told those guys since I became commander, let’s team up, lets work together lets do things for the whole order. We just wanted to get back to use our Pavilion. If that means we have to use the legions pavilion to do a cooperative thing with the Eagles I would be for it, but it takes a vote.
Cooke: I think let’s let Jonna come up with all of the information and then set down and get everyone together with the Eagles and Legion and set down and come up with a solution.
Rich: What you were saying Barry makes sense.
Cooke: If they were not charged anything before 1978 they were not charged.
Rich: Probably not.
Jonna: I don’t know anything before 84.
Cooke: I just wonder how it came about, when the Eagles took over, they finally took over.
Rich: We were paying nothing. They came to us and they wanted us to pay the 25%, it was kind of like this close to the hour of Labor Day, instead of just canceling it and saying no, I think Ted paid two years, and then he kept getting the flack from the old guys, this is crap we shouldn’t have to do this, how someone courted the Eagles I am not sure, and then we got involved with them and can we go back and forth, and that is how it happened though.
Cooke: But you were brought up to paying the 25% when you had been running it for nothing all those years.
Rich: Yes, he paid it the first couple of years, and the next year we didn’t, and then the Eagles had it for two years in a row.
Cooke: Let’s find out the information and then we will decide to do to make everyone happy.
The Mayor presented Ordinance 10-20 – an ordinance
authorizing the Village Administrator to hold an auction for village property
that is no longer needed. This ordinance
was placed on a second reading. Myers
made a motion to approve the second reading of this ordinance.
Shawn stated that this auction probably will not take place until Mid October.
Ordinance 10-21 , an ordinance enacting a new chapter of 1143 of the Codified Ordinances of the Village of New London, Relative to property maintenance and minimum standards. This ordinance was placed on a second reading. Kaufman made a motion to approve this ordinance. Martin seconded the motion.
Myers then asked who is going to handle this and follow through on this. This is so much more work is that going to be and is it going to cost us more money. Shawn explained that the fees are going to be set up to handle any costs, and he felt that someone like a professional building inspector should be hired on an “on-call basis” to handle this. Cooke asked if we are libel if something is inspected and then there is a problem, are we open to a lawsuit. Steve Bond stated that we should be immune from any action.
This also gives the zoning inspector some more backing on citing a property owner.
Myers then asked if we shouldn’t have someone already in place to take this job before we pass the final reading of this, shouldn’t we hire someone for this position on an on call basis. Shawn stated that would be fine if you wanted to table this and set up the fees first and also hire someone to do the inspections. You would have to know how much it is going to cost to set the fees.
Roll call was taken on Ordinance 10-21 – Kaufman, Myers, Cooke, Anderson and Martin all ayes.
Ordinance 10-22 – An ordinance enacting a new chapter 1145 of the Codified Ordinances f the Village of New London, relative to rental property maintenance and minimum standards. This was placed on a second reading. Myers made a motion. Kaufman seconded the motion. Roll call all ayes.
Ordinance 10-24 – An ordinance authorizing the Village
Administrator to enter into a contract with GGJ, Inc. for engineering services
in connection with the construction of storm sewer improvements along
Cooke then made a motion to pass Ordinance 10-24 on an
emergency measure.
The Mayor then asked for a report from the
Administrator.
Shawn reported that he is in then process of apply for Issue II money for the
Shawn then informed council that he will be in
He also informed council that he had met with Firelands Electric about becoming more green with the Electricity like the Street Lights, He is looking for grant money to accomplish this, but we cannot do it unless we get grant monies for this. He will keep council informed on this.
Shawn then also stated that in each of the council packets they will find a breakdown/ comparison of the general fund revenues for this year. It shows that we have already lost $32,000 up until July. He stated this is one of the reasons that we really need to have the income tax passed. This is $32,000 less than last year, and last year was down quite a bit. This shows it is getting worse, and this is just to give you an idea as to where we stand.
The Mayor then asked for Departmental reports. John Chapin stated that he has put bid requests in the paper for the building at the sewer plant, and also bids for painting the water tower.
.
Myers asked about the contract registration ordinance. Shawn stated he wasn’t ready to present that yet. Myers then asked on a contractor is that including the people that clean houses, or home health care, and how would they know to register?
Cooke asked do we have to spell out each occupation.
Steve Bond stated that the only definitions in there right now, construct, alter, repair or remodel a building. We can make it as broad or as limited as you want
Shawn stated that this is to cover the homeowners in town from the fly by night people.
Myers then asked so how are like a roofing company going to
be aware that they need to register.
Shawn we could post a sign at the city boarder, and if we see someone working
we can notify them that they should register.
There was no old or new business to be discussed.
The Mayor then presented the bills to be paid. Myers made a motion to pay the bills. Kaufman seconded the motion. Roll call all ayes.
Myers then made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Kaufman seconded the motion. Roll call all ayes
Jonna Rowland
Clerk/Treasurer Mayor