The Bedford finance department, headed by director Frank Gambosi, was awarded the Auditor State of Award with Distinction this week, and the members of the Bedford City Council gave him a virtual “pat on the back” during the regular meeting on Monday.
Only eight entities in the state of Ohio were given this award this year, including the Cuyahoga County Public Library and Fairview Park in Northeast Ohio. The award is bestowed on public entities that accomplish a “clean” audit with no issues at all. To see more about the qualifications for the award, check out the Ohio Auditor website.
Bedford Mayor Stan Koci praised the finance department for the good work they are doing.
“Frank, again thank you and your staff there for a job well done,” Koci said. “You continue to keep placing your bar higher every year — and you achieve it. Just amazing work goes on with the small staff there, and we certainly appreciated it.”
Also at the meeting, a number of council members expressed concerns about drivers speeding on roads in the city. Ward 1 Representative Sandy Spinks said she has been receiving a lot of phone calls, and has seen first-hand, people speeding in her ward, particularly on Grand Avenue and Willard Avenue.
“Someone is going to get hit,” she said. “I don’t want it to take an accident to get something done.” Along with the speeding, she said drivers “are not even attempting to stop at any of the stop signs.”
Ward 6 Representative Don Saunders said this speeding problem is an issue in many places, not just Bedford. He mentioned the State High Patrol has been pulling over multiple cars doing in excess of 100 mph recently. He said he is also surprised with the speeding in town, that there have not been more deer hit since there are large numbers in the neighborhoods.
Ward 4 Representative Paula Mizsak called the area of Santin Circle and Button Road in her ward the “Fast and Furious” section because of the speeding. Ward 2 Representative Walter Genutis ask City Manager Mike Mallis about the moveable, digital speed limit trackers that could be place around the city to remind people of their speed.
Mallis stated the one the city had was damaged this year and is no longer useable, but he has authorized the purchase of new devices to be moved around the city, and they will be available for use soon. Genutis said a bonus with those devices is that they can record where speeding occurs, and how much speeding is actually taking place.
In other business council:
– Approved the rezoning of an area on Harrison Street for an automotive designation.
– Approved an amendment allowing a rate reduction for water and sewer for disabled persons and senior citizens. A household qualifies if its residents made $34,366 or less in 2019. The filing deadline for the assistance is the last Friday in September, and the program will begin in January.
– Gave permission for the finance director to use the funding from the second round of the Ohio’s Cares Act to pay for the city’s COVID-related expenses. The amount Bedford received in this round was $190,573.53, and Gambosi said the funds will go toward costs for supplies, equipment and labor used to clean the City Building, and protect city employees during the pandemic.
– An area resident, Maria Foreman, brought a concern that with the school playgrounds being closed down, that children do not have as many safe place to play. Mallis said all of the city’s playgrounds are open, but that he would talk to the Bedford School District to see what their current policy is.
