The post Bedford City Council Candidate Debate for Ward 2 & Ward 6 first appeared on The Bedford Tribune.

City Manager Mike Mallis said that even though Bedford does not currently have a lot of short-term rentals, this issue has been on the city’s radar recently. Bedford has been looking for ways to help its safety forces deal with any issues that may come up from unruly temporary tenants, so it has reviewed some of the legislation adopted by nearby municipalities.

There was an incident that occurred earlier in April of this year that helped bring the need for more oversight to the forefront. The behavior of renters at an Airbnb on Woodrow Avenue, and the subsequent calls to police, were discussed in the “Hearing of Citizens” portion of the April 17 city council meeting.)

Mallis said the new ordinance will not be as extensive as some of the other cities around, but he said Bedford’s Law Director John Montello was able to put together some requirements that allows the city to track these businesses and to have direct emergency contact with the business owners should any safety issues arise.

At the beginning of the meeting, Mayor Stan Koci and the council welcomed a new officer to the Bedford Police force. Officer Taylor Temple transferred over from the Ashland County Sheriff after more than 6 years of service there. Koci administered the oath with Taylor in the presence of a number of members of the police force present.

“I’m excited to come to Bedford,” Temple said. “(and) I’m excited for this new journey. I’ve done a lot of things in my career so far, and I am excited to do a lot more.” Temple said he is particularly looking forward to interacting with the citizens.

At the meeting, council also agreed to condemn the property at 34 Nordham Drive. Mallis said that multiple notices have been sent to those who own the property over the last few years, but there has been no response. He said the animal warden has been out to the vacant residence multiple times, and that raccoons entered the home last year. Mallis said the ordinance condemning the home is an additional way to try to get a some sort of a response from those involved. If the property ultimately needs to be demolished, Mallis said the council would have to vote again.

Council approved discounts for water and sewer rates for those persons who are disabled or senior citizens. You can find a link here for an application for the water discount program. Finance Direct Jennifer Howland also noted that there are no plans this year to raise the water or sewer rates for the residents of Bedford.

On the topic of water, Mallis said work should begin soon on the water line project on Lincoln Avenue. He said the contractors had a 90-day deadline to get it completed once it is started. The work on that line is another in a list of water projects completed by the city this year. Others included water work on Harriman Avenue, Ennis Avenue and Washington Court.

Mallis said Bedford buys its water from Cleveland and then resells it, and tries to collect the water used back again to save money on costs. Mallis said, “Out water collection numbers remains extremely strong as far as managing a public utility.” He said there is going to be expected loss of water, especially with a system that is more than 100 years old. He said, when collecting water, you always want to get at least 70 percent back. Bedford surpasses that number by a large margin.

“We are in a range of 92 to 94 percent which is unbelievable,” he said, giving credit to the people at the water department who keep track of the condition of the lines.

“We sound the system multiple times a year,” Mallis said. “We identify those breaks and obviously repair them.”

He said that, just to put it into perspective, in the beginning of 2015, the percentage of water collected was about 60 percent.

In other business, the council:

• Approved a resolution accepting a donation of $15,000 that will be put toward a public art project in the city. The project will allow artists to decorate utility panels around town.
• Agreed on a contract with Painters of the Western Reserve to prepare and paint the exterior of the train depot at Bedford Commons.
• Approved the purchase of audio equipment upgrades at Bedford Commons that will be able to be used for special events throughout the city. The cost of the equipment is covered 100% by Community Development Block Grants.

The post Bedford approves measures to help with Airbnb safety first appeared on The Bedford Tribune.

The Bedford City Council approved the purchase of two new boilers for the Municipal Complex during a recent council meeting. According to City Manager Mike Mallis, one of the boilers failed last winter, and the other one was off and on during that time. He said the company that manufactured and installed the units is no longer in business, so fixing the boilers or getting new parts were not options.

“Companies that have come out have indicated that these high-efficiency boilers have reached the end of their life expectancy (of) about 25 years,” Mallis said. He said the city engineers put together the specs for the new boilers and ABC Piping came in with the lowest responsive bid of $165,000. (The highest bid to come in was $274,000.)

“We’ve done projects with ABC Piping before and they have done good work in the city,” Mallis said.

Part of the funds for the new boilers will come from a grant the city had received from the Northeast Ohio Public Energy Council (NOPEC). Mallis said the city will also look at other financing options through NOPEC for the remaining balance.

On a smaller scale, the council also approved the purchase of a hydraulic pump pounder for the city to help make it safer for workers to install or take down signage. Most of the roughly $15,000 price tag was provided through an $11,393.65 safety grant from the Bureau of Workers’ Comp, Mallis said. Up until now, he said that workers have been doing the sign work manually using sledgehammers.

The council also gave its approval for spending on three specific upgrades to the Bedford Commons. Mallis said the city recently received a Community Develop Block Grant (CDBG) for improvements which will go towards electrical upgrades at the commons, roof replacements for the gazebo and train station and restroom upgrades. Mallis emphasized the grant will take care of 100 percent of the cost, and that there will be no city monies going toward any of these upgrades.

During the Monday meeting, council took time to honor Clerk of Council Tracy Simons for completing her Certified Municipal Clerk (CMC) Program. Helen Dunlap, the vice president of the Ohio Municipal Clerks Association, was on hand to present Simons with her certificate and explain the rigorous process Simons had to go through to earn the CMC designation.

“After a dedicated journey of several years, hours of seminars, conferences and institute sessions, she has reached the pinnacle — an achievement that very few clerks are able to accomplish,” said Dunlap. “Out of 15,000 IIMC (International Institute of Municipal Clerks) members, she is one of 4,640 members worldwide to obtain this certification. In Ohio, there are less than 100 CMCs.”

On top of Simon’s CMC designation, Dunlap announced that Simon will also soon become the vice president of the Ohio Municipal Clerks Association when Dunlap moves up to take the role of president.

Bedford Mayor Stan Koci gave praise for the work that Simons has accomplished. “Tracy has just grown so much in this job over the last 4 years and does a great job for us,” Koci said. “And earning this (designation) … I have seen some of the stuff you had to do, and it’s a lot … we appreciate what you’ve done, and what you have accomplished so far. …It means you care about your job and are willing to go that extra mile.”

In other business, the board:

• Authorized entering into two contracts with Simplex-IT for informational technology services — one contract for IT services for the police department specifically, and one for services for all other municipal departments.
• Approved a rate deduction for disabled persons and senior citizens, allowing those residents to have water and sewer discounts.
• Was reminded that the State of the City will take place at 12:30 p.m. on August 29 at Ellenwood Center. For more information, click here.

The post Bedford Council approves purchasing boilers for Municipal Complex first appeared on The Bedford Tribune.

At the May 1 meeting, representatives from the Buckeye Relief answered questions from council members and other meeting attendees about the new Bedford business. Caroline Henry, head of governmental affairs for Buckeye Relief, said that while the location with be a retail store where patients can buy medical marijuana items, the general public is not allowed to enter the dispensary.

“To come into a dispensary you have to be a registered patient,” Henry said. “Which means you have to have one of 25 conditions that are approved by the state of Ohio to qualify.”

Also to qualify as a patient, Henry said you have to take your medical records to a recommending physician who is trained in prescribing medical marijuana. Patients can then be certified, which means they receive a special card from Ohio, that they then can present at the dispensary to allow entrance.

“We only allow patients, and they can bring one visitor with them to the dispensary,” said Henry. “And the visitor is not allowed to leave the lobby.” She said the visitor cannot enter the retail area of the dispensary, but is allowed to be accompany the patient who may need assistance getting to the store, or with talking to the pharmacist there. Patients under the influence of medical marijuana are not allowed to drive, Henry said.

Buckeye Relief also has a store in Cleveland Heights on Coventry Road, and Henry said the dispensaries are very secure. “You won’t see children from the community running into the dispensary,” Henry said. “That just doesn’t happen.”

A.J. Caraballo, the director of retail operations for Buckeye Relief, said they think maybe 100 to 200 customers could use the Bedford dispensary per day, and stated that Ohio has 168,000 patients registered for the use of medical marijuana. He said they expect 25 or more new jobs created by the new store in Bedford.

Henry said there is currently an initiative in the works that could legalize some sort of adult recreational use of marijuana in Ohio. The people backing the initiative are hoping to get the legislation on the November ballot. If such an initiative passes in Ohio, then medical marijuana dispensaries would automatically become adult use stores, Henry said. However, she said that local communities would still have a say on whether they want the dispensaries changed to adult use retail or not.

Buckeye Relief operates a 60,000-square foot cultivation facility in Eastlake, of which 25,000 square feet is used for growing the marijuana plants. The facility also has processing operations in which the oils from the plants are extracted and made into products such as tinctures, capsules and edibles.

Also at the meeting, the board also approved a planning commission recommendation to allow Jamil Zayed to build a 6,000-square foot addition to the retail properties located at 277 Northfield Road. Current businesses located at this address include John’s Deli, Mr. Hero and a home health care office. According to the recommendation, the addition would allow for four new white-box spaces to be created. City Manager Mike Mallis said two of the new units would be earmarked for the owner to house Nathan’s Famous Hot Dogs, and the other two spaces the owner would be leasing out.

In other board news:

• Council approved a contract with Simplex-IT to upgrade the city’s core network infrastructure at city hall. Mallis said the proposal is to install a 10-gigabyte fiber adapter which includes two new switches. He said this would raise the capacity of the current system from its 1 gigabyte limit and fix a failed switch in the process.
• Council also approved purchase of a device from Plug Hug that helps clean fire hydrants and prep them for painting, which will save a lot of time and manual effort, according Mallis. He said Chagrin Falls has been using a similar device, and they have been happy with the results.

The post Bedford council OKs plans for a medical marijuana dispensary first appeared on The Bedford Tribune.

There had been an informal poll at the council work session before the meeting to see if any changes to the law would have a chance of passage with the current board, and the vote came back two for chickens, and five against.

At the February 6 meeting, a number of residents had spoken to council during the public forum part of the meeting explaining the benefits of having chickens for a local source of eggs. They also talked about how hens eat bugs and table scraps, and how their waste can be used as fertilizer.

At the council’s March 6 meeting, Ward 1 Representative Sandy Spinks discussed her opposition to having chickens in the city. She said she grew up on a farm, and had chickens herself, and has a (soft) spot in her heart for chickens. Still, she said she feels that farms are where chickens belong, not in the city.

She repeated that it is just her opinion, but she felt that many lots in Bedford are small, and as a farm girl whose family had big chicken yards, she dislikes seeing chickens housed in tiny coops. She said on farms, chickens have the opportunity to have a lot of space and be healthy.

She also mentioned that when she talked to the mayor of Garfield Heights, Matt Burke, whose city allows chickens with permits, he said they were having problems with people just putting chickens in their backyards without those permits. Spinks said she thinks it would be difficult for Bedford to enforce the rules required for people to raise chickens with all of the other issues the city needs to focus on right now.

According to the website omlet.us, some of the other cities in the area that allow chickens are Chardon, Hudson, Strongsville, Brunswick and the city of Cleveland. Ward 2 Representative Walter Genutis has been an outspoken proponent of residents having the ability to produce their own food sources, including having backyard chickens.

“We as elected and appointed officials are caused to be responsible for society and its well-being,” Genutis said at the February 21 meeting. “As we witness empty store shelves and supply line disruptions, local food sources are an imperative going forward, which require our children also learn the means to grow and produce their own food . . .”

In other business, City Manager Mike Mallis said the city has been taking action in relation to the uptick in recent auto thefts in Northeast Ohio. This includes thefts from dealerships as well as private owners. He said patrols have been out at all times of the day and night and on weekends, and they have deterred some incidents from occurring.

Mallis said that while there has been extra policing in the area, residents still need to make sure they do their part by locking their car doors at night especially. He said for those who own Kia or Hyundai-brand vehicles that have been specifically susceptible to theft recently, there are 160 wheel locks available for those types of vehicles at the police department. He credited Sara Lloyd, police chief administrative assistant, for contacting those companies and getting the locks.

Mallis also announced that as of Mar. 27, Bedford will have a new building commissioner, Michael Greer. Greer is currently an assistant building commissioner for Fairview Park, and will be splitting his time with that city and Bedford.

Also, Mallis said the city is on track to double the amount of parking citations that have been handed out this year compared to last year. He said so far there have been more than 320 citations. This includes nighttime street parking violations as well as people parking in their yards.

In other council business:

• Ward 5 Representative Jeff Asbury reminded residents that there will be an Easter Egg Hunt on April 1, held by the Bedford Parks and Recreation Department, at Bearcat Stadium for Bedford children 12 and under. Gates open at 9:45 a.m. with the hunt starting at 10.
  
• Th council approved purchase of a mainline sewer camera. Mallis said the city has contracted the work with others in the past, but with this purchase, it now allows city crews to find problems more quickly and save some money in the long run.

The post Bedford Council will not challenge ban of backyard chickens in the city first appeared on The Bedford Tribune.

Soon afterward, the council approved the construction of two 100,000-plus-square foot industrial/manufacturing facilities by LDC Construction at the commerce park. Mayor Stan Koci announced that the two businesses planning to build the facilities at the park are Cleveland Tank and Supply and the Lakeshore Electric Corp.

Lakeshore Electric is currently located on Willis Street in Bedford, and according to Koci, needs the new space because it is running out of room at its current facility. Cleveland Tank and Supply will be new to the Bedford area, and according to Koci, will be bringing with it a “bunch of jobs” to the city.

Koci said they are both family-run businesses and solid industry that the community can get behind. He said the businesses will be clean as far as they are not the kind of facilities that will put any smoke or pollutants in the air.

Earlier in the meeting, Koci presented honors to two individuals in the council chambers in front of a sizable audience (for a council meeting.) Koci first did the swearing-in of Sergeant David Kempski to the Bedford Police Department. After the swearing-in. Kempski’s two young sons, Dylan and Landon, participated in putting their father’s badge on his uniform. Kempski had many family and friends in attendance.

Next, Koci read a proclamation honoring Joshua Armstrong, a member of Bedford Troop 399, who was given the recent distinction of Eagle Scout. According to the proclamation, Armstrong’s Eagle Scout project was to build a gated fence around the AC unit at Bible Baptist Church to prepare for when the church orders it new unit. Armstrong introduced a number of people who were there supporting him, including some fellow scouts.

Council later approved another motion allowing for any emergency funds needed for unforeseen issues during the refurbishment of the pool house at the municipal pool. City Manager Mike Mallis said they televised the main sewer line that goes to the facility, and runs underneath the building, and found that it had failed in multiple places. Since the interior walls of the pool house are already torn down, Mallis said they recommend that now is the best time to replace the entire sewer line. He said they will need to cut into the floor to accomplish this.

With the additional emergency funds the council approved for the pool house project, there will now hopefully be no delays in the completion of the refurbishment.

The council also agreed to enter into a contract with the Ohio Department of Transportation for the resurfacing of Broadway Avenue from one end of the city to the other. Mallis said the total cost of the resurfacing is $4 million, with the city responsible for paying $1.296 million of the total including redesign costs. Mallis said roughly $650,000 of the funds the city will use to pay for the project with come from American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds along with funds from the city’s annual road program.

Mallis stated that it only took a short time before the Flock cameras on the town’s border have come in handy. There was a shooting in Maple Heights, and the camera at Turney Road and Lee Road South was able to read the license plate of the suspect’s car leading to an arrest.

“I honestly think it was within one week of those cameras being up and running that they’ve already proven valuable,” said Mallis. The 16 Flock cameras were recently purchased for around $40,000 and were placed around the main entryways to the city to aid in apprehension of criminals in situations similar to the one highlighted.

Mallis commended the first responders, who just the day before the council meeting, went to help in the deadly explosion that took place at I. Schumann & Co. metal company in Oakwood Village. The responders included units from Bedford.

Later in the meeting, Ward 6 Rep. Don Saunders asked Mallis if the city had any plans set if a train derailment, like the one that happened in East Palestine, Ohio, occurs in Bedford. Mallis responded that safety agencies have indeed discussed various situations and there are plans in place that include items such as securing a site, rerouting traffic and notifying the public of possible dangers. Mallis said the city would also rely heavily on advice from the Cuyahoga County Office of Emergency Management.

The post Council approves plans to construct two facilities in Tinkers Creek Commerce Park first appeared on The Bedford Tribune.

Ward 1 Representative Sandy Spinks said the amount of fireworks going off this year was “crazy.” The noise was so loud it knocked a picture off her wall, she said.

“It is just the amount of disrespect from neighbors for people with dogs and cats, and our seniors,” she said. “It even made me nervous after a while.”

She said a lady from another ward called her six times about the noise. Spinks said the woman has an older dog, and the animal was having a panic attack.

“It was very aggravating,” Spinks said. “I know our guys (officers) were trying to do their best, (in responding to the noise).” She added that it was common for people to be lighting off fireworks as late as 2 a.m.

In November, Ohio House Bill 172 was signed into law stating that it was now legal for residents to let off consumer-grade fireworks in Ohio. There was a provision in the bill to allow municipalities to opt out of the law, and adopt their own laws. Earlier in the spring, the Bedford council passed Ordinance No. 9967-22 which once again imposed a complete ban on consumer-grade fireworks. See a copy of the approved ordinance at the link here. 

City Manager Mike Mallis said that although the city had gotten the word out prior to the holiday, it will take some time to continue to remind residents that lighting off consumer-grade fireworks is not allowed. He said it is particularly difficult when neighboring cities allow those types of activities. Even with the challenges, he said the Bedford police were ready to respond to the calls when they came in.

“We had 14 or 16 calls and we were chasing,” Mallis said. “We can’t cite unless we are physically right there and witness it. It’s not that we didn’t cite. We addressed some of them, but it’s going to take a while to drive home that this is not permitted in Bedford.”

He said when the ordinance originally passed a few months ago banning the fireworks, he wanted to make sure residents did not get a false sense that they were not going to hear fireworks at all. He said the city will continue to put out information to the public to educate residents about the ban.

Ward 4 Representative Frank Smith Jr. thanked Mallis for giving attention to the sewer project on Corkhill Road behind the Colony Club Apartments. He said that workers have been pulling up a large amount of debris from the hole there including objects like trees and telephone poles. Mallis said, due to the nature of the project, the people working on the area were not able to give a definite date for the completion.

Ward 5 Representative Jeff Asbury spoke in his report to the council about the growing dangers of water pellet guns, also known as Orbeez guns, in the city. He said there have been reports of local kids shooting the pellets at people and cars.

“Parents, grandparents, guardians of kids, don’t let your kids do this,” Asbury said. “They are going to run into the wrong person one day.”

He went on to talk about an incident in Garfield Heights where a woman pulled her legally-carried gun on individuals because they shot at her with these pellet guns.

“The best outcome from somebody shooting (these guns) is they get a ticket,” Asbury said. “The worst … we don’t even want to talk about it.”

Ward 6 Representative Don Saunders asked the city to look into doing something about the leaning telephone pole on Northfield Road across from Giant Eagle. He said the situation should be on the critical list due to all the wires involved.

Ward 3 Representative Vic Fluharty asked Mallis for an update on the guardrail plans on Union Street. Mallis said a quote came in from the county on replacing the smaller guardrail with a larger one to completely protect the section of homes located there. The cost came in around $29,000. Mallis inquired about the county covering the costs since it is a county road and they installed the guardrails initially, but they refused to do so. So, Mallis said he wrote them back and asked them to revisit that decision especially due to safety concerns in that vicinity. Mallis said he had not received a response as of yet.

The council approved an ordinance that allowed for slight changes in the wards for “equalization. An outside company was hired to give recommendations, and Koci said the results did not change a whole lot as far as the wards were concerned.

Also during the meeting, Mayor Stan Koci was presented a check from Jeanne Sapir of the Bedford Garden Club. The $600 donation was to help the city take care of the flowers on the Union Street bridge over Tinkers Creek, and for the Arbor Day celebration.

In other council business:

• This was Finance Director Frank Gambosi’s last official meeting, but since he was under the weather, Koci said they would have a nice send-off recognizing his years of service at another time.
  
• The Annual Bedford Rotary Rib Festival is planned for the weekend of July 22-24. See info here.
  
• The old Dog House on Broadway Avenue will be reopening as the Wild Dog this month.
  
• Asbury shared that Elmer Flick Days will take place July 15 and 16, and the event will include many activities such as an old-time baseball game, a barbershop quartet and movies for the family. See info here.
  
• Residents were reminded that some of the voting places in Bedford will be changed temporarily for the Aug. 2 primaries due to a conflict in scheduling at the Ellenwood Center. Voters in Wards 1 through 4 will be voting at Bedford High School, while Wards 5 and 6 will voting at Glendale Elementary School.
  
• Council approved an ordinance that will raise refuse and recycling fees to $18 per month for a single family home. Assistant Finance Director Jennifer Howland said the old cost per month was $14 per month per unit.
  
• Council approved a number of ordinances that will put amendments on the upcoming ballot for residents to vote upon to update the city charter. The potential changes were proposed by the Charter Review Commission, and most had to do with how elections are run in the city.

The post Bedford Council addresses fireworks, sewer repairs and more at meeting first appeared on The Bedford Tribune.

If approved, the special use permit would have allowed the state to utilize the land, which is zoned as an I-2 Industrial District, for administrative offices, a high school, and housing units for 96-120 youth.

The new campus would have replaced the aging facility currently located in Highland Heights. State representatives had presented their plans for the property during a meeting at city hall on April 25 that was attended by many. (See video here.)

The Planning Commission had earlier made the decision to grant the permit, along with an amendment which stated, among other things, that the location would not exceed the limit of 120 youth. This amendment would have restricted the state’s ability to enlarge the facility to house more people in the future.

“Our decision tonight was based on our restrictions and the state’s concerns with those restrictions, in addition to the best use in this zoning district,” said Mayor Stan Koci following the vote.

While the state does not pay property taxes on facilities it runs, the hundreds of potential workers at the facility could have brought in close to $400,000 in income taxes a year according to some estimates.

Some residents have voiced their concerns on social media about having a correctional facility located in Bedford, and at that particular location. You could hear some attendees at the meeting voice their “thank yous” to the council members as they announced their “no” votes one-by-one.

Ward 2 Representative Wally Genutis went on to explain the reason for his “no” vote during the time for his report to the council. He stated that it was the state requirements that were at issue for him, not necessarily the idea of the correctional facility.

He said he is aware that there there can be a stigma attached to having a jail in a community, and that if it was in a prominent, visible place, they probably wouldn’t have considered it. He also stated that if the council truly thought it was something to fear, as far as danger to the residents was concerned, they also would not be considering it.

He said one factor that some people are overlooking is the needs of the youth themselves — youth who have made bad choices, but have also probably been victims of a variety of injustices against them in their short lives.

“The Ohio Department of Youth Services is not meaning to simply operate a prison here,” he said. “It would be prudent to check their website to understand what they mean to accomplish using highly trained, highly educated staffing, programs and initiatives. They have no intention to merely release hardened criminals back onto the streets.”

Genutis said there has been little interest over the years in the property for the proposed facility. He said the land could be put to good use by the state to address a lot needs of the youth they serve.

However, he said, “There are some other matters that need to be addressed in order for me to feel comfortable about (the plan). Some other things that Bedford (we) talked about that needed to have acceptance from the state which hasn’t happened as of yet, but possibly there will be more to this than what happened today.”

In other board news:

• Ward 1 Representative Sandy Spinks reminded residents about the Strawberry Festival that will be taking place this weekend (June 10-12) which will include a lot of live music and a variety of strawberry concoctions. The event is sponsored by the Bedford Historical Society.
• Ward 5 Representative Jeff Asbury shared with council that there is a new ice-cream shop called “Krave Cafe” now located in downtown Bedford near the square.
• Spinks reiterated the need for residents to follow the speed limits in town, particularly on roads that bypass Rockside Road like Willard Avenue and Grand Boulevard. She said the speeds are reaching dangerous levels and stop signs are not being obeyed.
• Ward 6 Representative Don Saunders reminded residents that the July 4th Parade will be back in its full grandeur this year, after a few years of scaled-back offerings due to the pandemic. He said the parade will follow its traditional path down Columbus Road and into downtown.
• City Manager Mike Mallis said more than 50 trees have been planted in the city this spring to offset the amount of dead and diseased trees that had been removed in previous years. He said city workers have been making their way around the city with the grinder to dismiss of the leftover stumps. More trees are scheduled to be planted in the fall.

The post Bedford City Council declines permit for state juvenile correctional facility first appeared on The Bedford Tribune.

Quinisha Singleton of Bedford Heights was given permission by the board to begin the process of opening the center at the address that once used to house Dairy Queen. Along with that available space, the building will continue to house the Bam Childress State Farm Agency (403 Broadway) and Solid Gold Properties Real Estate Sales and Services (405 Broadway).

According to the application, the child care center center would be open 24 hours — Monday through Friday — with three shifts of employees. Singleton is currently running the business from her residence, according to a representative.

The website MyPlace Cuyahoga County said the building was constructed in 1975, and was most recently purchased by Ahuja Commercial Inc in March of 2016. According to the Dairy Queen Google site, the ice-cream parlor/restaurant had been closed starting in November 2015.

There were questions during the meeting about whether the proposed site would meet the state requirement for outside play space. Still, the board went ahead and approved the measure.

For some in Bedford, seeing orange barrels on the road may seem like a nuisance, but to those who travel Union Street frequently, or live there, the barrels on the road now are probably a very welcome sight, as crews prepare to resurface the road. This is a joint project between the city and county, and has been in the works for years. Union will be repaved from where it meets Broadway Avenue downtown to where it crosses again further south of the city.

Speaking of repaved streets, crews are already finished with the resurfacing of Nordham Drive. The city was able to pave this road with money it was able to save on other roadwork. The city is currently working on sidewalk repair.

The council was reminded of the dangers for those who choose to ignore warning signs at Viaduct Park, as there was news recently of swimmer needing to be rescued by emergency crews.

The post Council approves child care center use for old Dairy Queen location first appeared on The Bedford Tribune.

Terrace Construction of Cleveland brought the lowest bid of the six companies in the running for the job. The company agreed to change out the waterline and also resurface the street for the price of around $424,000. This cost is well below the $513,000 the engineers had predicted it might cost. The waterline work will take place between Broadway Avenue and Kenyon Avenue.

City Manager Mike Mallis said they would like to see the project begin as soon as possible so the work can be completed well before the opening of the pool for the summer. Terrace Construction estimates the job will take about 60 days to complete.

The council also agreed to hire M&G Pools out of Twinsburg to open and close the pool this year, as well as provide weekly upkeep. The contract with M&G will be a around $11,000 this year, plus $127 per weekly visit, which is just a little more than the city had been paying previous years. The person the city usually works with to open and close the pool was unable to return this year. That person’s service along with the price of other seasonal staff cost the city around $10,500 a year.

Mallis said that since the pool has been sitting idle for a year (which is never good for a pool) he expects there to be possible issues with the reopening, and he said it would be money well spent to have a professional company on hand to address anything that comes up.

Mallis said the exact start date of the opening of the pool is still not certain, and it will probably hinge on what Governor Mike Dewine does as far as removing restrictions for those types of activities. However, Mallis said that if the city doesn’t start preparing now, the pool will not be ready once the time comes to use it.

Back in Familiar Surroundings

The council meeting, while still held virtually, saw many of the representatives back in the council chambers at City Hall for the first time in a year. Council has yet to formally announced the person who will be serving as the interim Ward 5 representative until elections in the fall.

The Ward 5 seat was vacated earlier this year when Representative Heather Rhoades stepped down due to health issues.

The board also approved funds for the design of the Union Street Resurfacing Project. The city drew up the plans for the resurfacing at a cost of $36,750, of which 60% will be covered by Cuyahoga County. The county, not the city, will be doing the actual resurfacing of Union Street. The work will extend from where the street begins at Broadway Avenue close to downtown all the way until it runs into Broadway again at the southern end of the city. The total cost of the resurfacing work will be around $750,000, with Bedford responsible for just 20% of that price tag. Mayor Stan Koci mentioned that this is something the community has waited a long time to have completed.

Ward 6 Representative Don Saunders asked Mallis about any word from the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) concerning the Northfield Road bridge. Mallis said that they have met with ODOT recently and that the agency has done some survey work, which he said is a good sign. He said ODOT assured the city that addressing the condition of the bridge is on their list of concerns. Mallis said once he hears of a timeline of what needs to be done, he will let the board know.

In the meantime, Saunders warned pedestrians to make sure they do not lean on the shaky fence as they cross the bridge. He also said he recently saw someone trip on the uneven pavement. He warned that the work on the bridge needs to be done soon and said the more that time goes by, the more costly the bridge will be to fix.

In other business:

* Mallis said the city’s chipper service will be started up again the first full week of April

* Finance Director Frank Gambosi said the city tax department will not be giving face-to-face help again this year due to the pandemic, put taxpayers can drop their W2s off at City Hall or mail them in during the next few weeks, and the tax department will process the forms. They will then send out bills to the taxpayers in time for them to pay their taxes by the due date of April 15.

* Ward 2 Representative, Walter Genutis reminded residents about the noteworthy history of the Bedford Garden Club, and that this time of year is a great opportunity to join the club. You can visit their Facebook page at http://www.bedfordgardenclub.com/

* Ward 4 Representative Paula Mizsak complemented the city on the newly installed automatic doors at City Hall, and said that residents have noticed and are thankful.

The post Bedford council approves measures to ready municipal pool for summer first appeared on The Bedford Tribune.