Maxine Mobbs, president of the Belpre Tree Commission, gives the commission’s annual report to Belpre City Council on Monday evening at the Belpre Municipal Building. (Photo by Wayne Towner)

BELPRE — The Belpre Tree Commission gave the annual reports of its activities, plans and goals at Monday’s meeting of Belpre City Council.

Tree commission president Maxine Mobbs said volunteers planted 15 trees in 2019 at a total cost of $2,280, with 10 trees removed for various reasons.

A total of 236.25 volunteer hours were recorded for the year, including 77 hours by Mayor Mike Lorentz, Mobbs said. Commission members set up displays for Arbor Day and continued education efforts.

Mobbs said the commission will be partnering on a project with the Ohio University Voinovich School of Leadership and Public Affairs in the spring. The plan is to build a rain garden near Civitan Park Pond, for which a $10,000 grant has been obtained.

“We are also working with OSU Extension Officer Marcus McCartney to plan an apple tree grafting from the Holdren apple trees in Civitan Park. These are very old now and we lost one in 2017 and the others are not in a very good state. As we need to remove them for the rain garden project, this seems like a very good idea to try and save them,” Mobbs said.

In other action, council approved the second and third readings of an ordinance establishing a city-owned impound lot and setting the fees and policies before vehicles can be released from the lot back into their owners’ possession. The lot is for vehicles impounded by city law enforcement in some situations.

The lot, which is located near the city sewer plant, will be for vehicles seized by police due to criminal offenses, not for general traffic offenses or parking tows. Safety-Service Director Connie Hoblitzell said with Monday’s council actions, the lot can begin operating as soon as it is needed.

To release an impounded vehicle, Hoblitzell said required documentation that will include a valid driver’s license, current vehicle registration, current proof of insurance, state issued identification and vehicle title. The fees, which must be paid before release from impound, will include towing fee (charges incurred by the third-party towing company), a $30 administrative fee and a $20 per day storage fee.

Any unclaimed vehicles stored more than 30 days will be subject to Ohio Revised Code for disposal of such vehicles through auction or sale.