Full minutes

Members present

• Chris Haney, Vice Mayor (presiding)
• Brown
• Harvey
• Hock

A regular meeting of Ironton City Council was held on Thursday, May 14, 2026, at 6:00 p.m. in Council Chambers, with Vice Mayor Haney presiding — four members present. All persons stood for an invocation by Father Peter with St. Joseph, St. Lawrence, St. Mary’s, and St. Ann’s churches, and then the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag.

Approval of minutes

The minutes of the Regular Council Meeting of April 23, 2026, the Finance Committee Meeting of April 23, 2026, the Public Utilities Committee Meeting of April 23, 2026, and the two Public Hearings of April 23, 2026 at 5:00 p.m. and 5:15 p.m. stood approved as submitted with one exception. Mr. Harvey noted that in the Public Hearing at 5:15 p.m., in the third paragraph, fourth line down, the text states “they recommended this public hearing” and it should state “they recommended this legislation.” The Clerk noted the correction.

Mr. Haney said they wanted to recognize Troop #106. Mayor Cramblit read a proclamation regarding the 100th anniversary of Troop #106 and designating the Week of May 17–23, 2026, as Troop #106 Week in the City of Ironton, and encouraged all citizens to join in celebrating this remarkable event.

Mr. Haney introduced Kevin Wood of Arcadis as an invited guest to provide an update on ongoing City projects. Mr. Wood distributed a project list and reviewed each item:

• Batham Lane and Orchard sewer projects: The contractor for the storm sewer and pump station contract has been in; concrete repairs are underway and should be complete by end of May. A dirt pile noted by Ms. Tussey was confirmed to have been overlooked by the contractor; he will be in the following week to address it. Ongoing coordination on the final punch list of items is continuing with the contractor.
• 3rd Street Water Line: Phil from Howerton met on site with John Haskins and Mike Pemberton and Allard; Allard is addressing remaining issues.
• Storm Pump Station #7: Slated to be completed by end of October.
• Third Street paving (next small phase): Several plan holders but only one bid received, from Shelly Company. The bid was more than 20% above the estimate, requiring the scope to be reduced and rebid in the next month. Striping of the entire corridor is to be included at the City’s direction in the rebid.
• Waste Water Plant and lift station: A Permit to Install (PTI) is in hand.
• Storm Fee Analysis: Ongoing.
• Rice property (sanitary sewer): Permit to Install in hand. Plans for the water permit are still under EPA review.
• N 5th Street/Ellison Sanitary Sewer project: Permit in hand; loan available.
• Water meter upgrades: Basically complete.
• PFAS General Plan: The City received a grant of $149,000 to cover the cost of the General Plan and estimated testing. The General Plan — with a total estimated construction cost of roughly $10.5–$12.5 million — has been submitted to EPA. The City must pay the review fee and await EPA’s initial comments (the process has previously taken approximately three months for initial comments, followed by additional exchanges). EPA must also approve the City’s submitted testing protocol. Once both are approved, the City moves to testing, followed by design and ultimately construction. Wood stated that Ironton is eligible for Dupont settlement funds distributed by Ohio EPA and remains on the eligible list; however, the City does not currently have a confirmed $10 million grant in hand. The settlement total was approximately $100 million, of which approximately $20 million was set aside for other uses (such as algae bloom and river clean-up) and a portion went to legal fees, leaving $65 million for communities. Smaller communities on the list were penciled in at approximately $5 million each; Ironton was penciled in at $10 million because it is a larger surface-water treatment system. If other communities do not use all of their allocated funds, some of those dollars could be redirected to Ironton. Wood stated that he and the EPA contact had a miscommunication for which he takes responsibility, and that he has been told Ironton is still on the list even though a draft press release did not include Ironton by name. Construction is at least 1½–2 years away, providing time to pursue additional Federal or State funding sources. Brigham Anderson clarified that the City is also a plaintiff in a separate PFAS lawsuit in which it has already received DuPont funds that are distinct from the EPA-administered settlement amounts; those funds are currently in the budget designated as PFAS money and have not yet been spent, having been held pending the outcome of the EPA funding question.
• Riverfront: All sheet piles are in and filled behind. Stairs, sidewalks, and clean-up remain. The contractor has until end of October by contract but expects to be finished in July.
• Waste Water Plant digester, trickling filter, and disinfection: Design has begun; this is one of the loans that Rochelle was working on that will proceed with the design.

Council raised the following additional items with Mr. Wood:

• Orchard Street pump station gate: Mr. Haney noted the gate on the pump station is not straight for a new installation. Nate had also raised this concern.
• Third Street paving warranty: Mr. Brown asked whether striping is part of that project. Mr. Wood confirmed it was not but will be included in the rescoped rebid. There are ongoing communications about what Allard is planning to do to address the paving condition.
• Paving cost estimates: Mr. Haney referenced a request from Nate for a cost estimate to pave Vernon Street, from the Gateway on 9th Street to approximately 6th or 7th, and from halfway between Park Avenue and the alley. Mayor Cramblit and others discussed including the stretch near Dairy Queen down to 9th and to 7th. Mr. Brown also noted the block in front of Dollar General on 3rd Street is rough. Mr. Wood said he had priced Vernon Street and 8th Street but did not have the figures with him; Mr. Haney asked that he email the estimates to Council.
• Emergency generator: Mr. Harvey asked about a State program for purchasing refurbished government equipment — specifically generators — for the Water Plant. Mr. Wood indicated the State’s surplus programs he is aware of are primarily for vehicles, and generators would be difficult to source that way because they need to be sized specifically and are in high demand. Mr. Haskins said he had not heard of a generator refurbishment program but described an alternative: entering a pre-emergency contract with a local vendor that rents generators, placing the City on a reservation list in the event of a major outage, potentially with an annual hold fee; he suggested this may be worth exploring for the Water Plant. Mr. Elam mentioned having visited a Ross County program that refurbishes equipment and does body work, but said it is primarily vehicles and not accessory equipment.
• Lead testing: Mr. Harvey asked about the status. Mr. Wood said Arcadis’s Cincinnati office is handling it and has been working closely with Erin; as of approximately three weeks prior, the team (including Darby) was still in the potholing phase. Mr. Harvey asked whether results would be published. Mayor Cramblit noted that a survey was conducted with many participating residents but the City is conducting testing on its own.
• Water meter billing: Mr. Haney described an issue in which some customers received unusually high bills due to 33-day billing periods following the new meter installations, and noted approximately five instances in which work on one side of a meter connection led to problems on the other side. Mr. Wood said metering operational questions are best directed to Erin Edens.

Audience participation

Mary Ann Tussey, 1507 Karin Street, reported that her water bill was over $800 this month and noted that the hourly monitoring capability of the new meters is useful. She stated that when a plumber was called to 1606 to fix a hose, the plumber observed that the new meter appeared not to have a stopple, requiring them to rely on shutting the water off at the house without being able to verify it was fully off. Mr. Haney asked whether she had a way to cut the main water supply. Ms. Tussey said the plumber cut it off but could not verify it was fully closed, so they relied on shutting off at the house; the plumber said it did not appear the new meters came with stopples. Mayor Cramblit noted he believes a shutoff should be present before the meter. Mr. Brown said his meter still has one.

Ms. Tussey also reported that a gas company cut across Orchard Street has not been filled in with asphalt; when turning from Second Street onto Orchard, there is a significant break in the asphalt that forces drivers to move into the other lane, and she asked that someone look at patching it. She asked whether there was any plan to depict the City’s churches on the riverfront murals, noting a church on Catlettsburg’s mural as an example. Mr. Haney noted that choosing among the many beautiful churches would be difficult and that such decisions are not made by Council. Mayor Cramblit noted that groups are working to restore faded or disrepaired murals and that there is still space to add new ones, with designs reviewed before approval. Ms. Tussey asked whether the emergency access road on the Rice property would be retained or become part of the lot to be sold. Mayor Cramblit said it was never intended to be a permanent road and would likely return to what it was before it was used that way.

Mayor Cramblit announced a downtown clean-up at 9:00 a.m. the following morning with St. Joseph and St. Lawrence participating, and noted that the time capsule at Memorial Hall would be opened on Saturday at 4:00 p.m.

Reports

None.

Ordinances

• Amended Ordinance No. 26-09 — An Ordinance of the City Council of Ironton, Ohio, to Amend the Ironton Zoning Code to Define and Add Specific Requirements for Data Centers and Data Center Accessory Uses — third reading. Mr. Harvey noted that Amended Ordinance No. 26-09 received a favorable recommendation from the Planning Commission and followed all necessary steps to reach third reading. Mr. Harvey moved, seconded by Mr. Hock, to adopt Amended Ordinance No. 26-09. Motion passed unanimously. ADOPTED.

Resolutions

• Resolution No. 26-31 — Resolution Authorizing the Approval of the Contract for Services Agreement with the Ironton-Lawrence County Area Community Action Organization, Inc. (CAO). Mr. Harvey moved, seconded by Mr. Haney, to refer Resolution No. 26-31 to Finance Committee and add to the next agenda. Motion passed unanimously.
• Resolution No. 26-32 — Requesting the County Auditor to Certify the Estimated Property Tax Revenue for a Renewal Recreation Levy and Declaring an Emergency — read. Mr. Harvey moved, seconded by Mr. Hock, to pass Resolution No. 26-32. Motion passed unanimously. ADOPTED. Mr. Harvey asked Brigham Anderson whether this was the first of two pieces of legislation on the levy. Anderson confirmed yes, stating he hopes to bring the second by the second meeting of June. Mr. Harvey and Mr. Haney said they would sponsor that legislation.

Miscellaneous

Mr. Harvey raised the issue of ACH electronic payment options for City utility bills and taxes. He described three instances since October in which paper checks sent through his bank’s bill pay were not received by the City’s Water Office; each time the bank said the check was sent and the Water Office said it was not received. He also described a prior-year city tax payment — a paper check handed in with his W-2s and city tax return — that was never deposited or filed, resulting in a demand for the prior year’s amount when he came to pay taxes the following year. He asked John Elam to contact the City’s software company, obtain a quote, and present options for Council’s decision. Discussion followed on the difficulty of finding software that integrates with the City’s existing systems without requiring manual entry; a prior contact at Invoice Cloud had indicated the product would meet the City’s needs, but a subsequent contact said they were unaware of that claim. Cost examples were discussed: Mayor Cramblit said Chillicothe reported spending $65,000 per year on its ACH service and was discontinuing it because of that cost. Mayor Cramblit noted Athens was also explored and one of them had decided against it due to cost. Mr. Elam said Ashland’s solution was also expensive. John Elam said he will contact the software company, obtain a quote regardless of cost, and present the options to Council for a decision.

Mr. Haney noted that the following day is the deadline for Ohio Ethics Commission filings. Mayor Cramblit confirmed the time capsule at Memorial Hall would be opened on Saturday at 4:00 p.m. He noted that Navy Night begins at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, May 21st. There will be no Council meeting during the Memorial Day period; the next meeting will be held after Memorial Day. Fireworks will be on Saturday, May 23rd, and the Memorial Day parade will be on May 25th.

Executive session

Mr. Haney moved, seconded by Mr. Hock, to go into a brief executive session to discuss possible contracts, with the Mayor, Finance Director, Council, and Solicitor, with no action to follow. Motion passed unanimously.

Attestation

Minutes were taken by Marta Leach, Clerk. Also in attendance: John Elam, Mayor Cramblit, and Brigham Anderson. The minutes were signed by the Clerk, the Vice Mayor, and the Mayor.