Parkersburg City Council passes first reading of Land Reuse Agency ordinance
Parkersburg City Councilman J.R. Carpenter speaks during discussion of an ordinance establishing a Land Reuse Agency during Tuesday’s Parkersburg City Council meeting. (Photo by Evan Bevins)
From left, Arc of the Mid-Ohio Valley program and activities coordinator Doug Hess, Arc Executive Director Liz Ford, Parkersburg Mayor Tom Joyce and Parkersburg Finance Director Eric Jiles, an Arc board member, pose for a photo with a mayoral proclamation designating October as Down Syndrome Awareness Month, Learning Disability Awareness Month and National Disability Employment Awareness Month during Tuesday’s Parkersburg City Council meeting. (Photo by Evan Bevins)
Parkersburg City Councilman J.R. Carpenter speaks during discussion of an ordinance establishing a Land Reuse Agency during Tuesday’s Parkersburg City Council meeting. (Photo by Evan Bevins)
From left, Arc of the Mid-Ohio Valley program and activities coordinator Doug Hess, Arc Executive Director Liz Ford, Parkersburg Mayor Tom Joyce and Parkersburg Finance Director Eric Jiles, an Arc board member, pose for a photo with a mayoral proclamation designating October as Down Syndrome Awareness Month, Learning Disability Awareness Month and National Disability Employment Awareness Month during Tuesday’s Parkersburg City Council meeting. (Photo by Evan Bevins)
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PARKERSBURG -- Parkersburg City Council this week started the process of establishing a land reuse agency to further efforts to rehabilitate dilapidated properties
"What the Legislature provided was another mechanism for communities … to take otherwise unused or useless property and get it back into service, back into use," Mayor Tom Joyce said Wednesday. "It's an opportunity to engage more people in doing good for the community."
Council voted 9-0 during its regular meeting Tuesday to approve the first reading of an ordinance creating the organization, after some debate about the requirements for its membership.
The ordinance says the agency would have the ability to buy, sell and develop real property in the city; to issue bonds and borrow money; and to enter into partnerships with other government entities. Unlike the Urban Renewal Authority, which consists of all nine members of council, it could not use the power of eminent domain, but Joyce has said the agency would have the right of first refusal on properties sold at tax sales, which sometimes make their way to URA or the Building Enforcement Agency due to a lack of maintenance.
The agency would be overseen by a five-member board that would establish its rules. The board would be made up of a council member, a representative from the Wood County Development Authority, a member of the Chamber of Commerce of the Mid-Ohio Valley, a representative from the Parkersburg Area Labor Council and a city resident who is a member of a civic organization.
During Tuesday's meeting, Councilman J.R. Carpenter made a motion that each member be a resident of the city.
"This is our money, created here, and it should be handled" by people here, he said.
Joyce asked Carpenter if he would agree to make the requirement that members be residents or owners of real property in the city as a compromise. It is sometimes difficult to find qualified people to serve on city boards and committees, the mayor said.
"The residency requirement can be a stickler," Joyce said.
Carpenter agreed, but the amendment was rejected 7-2, with only Carpenter and Councilman Jeff Fox voting for it.
Councilman John Reed said people who have businesses in the city but rent property instead of owning it also contribute.
"I don't care if someone lives in Belpre, Ohio, or Marietta for that matter," Councilman Zach Stanley said. "If they're making my city better, then I want them on this board."
Carpenter noted that the state legislation authorizing creation of such agencies says the ordinance must include the names of the initial members of the board.
"I know that's what the law says, but it makes no sense," City Attorney Joe Santer said, adding that if members' names had been submitted with the ordinance and Carpenter's amendment had passed, some of them might have become ineligible to serve.
Santer suggested a compromise could be including a resolution with the members' names in conjunction with the final reading of the ordinance. On Wednesday, he said that after reviewing the code, he believes the proper approach is to amend the ordinance to include the names of the members.
"We'll do it in a way that it'll pass muster," Santer said.
In other business, council unanimously approved the final reading of an ordinance allowing UTVs and mini trucks on a city street if the operator has a valid license, the vehicle is titled, registered and licensed and is insured by a liability policy at least equal to state requirements. The final reading of an ordinance abandoning an unimproved portion of Locust Street and portions of two nearby alleys also passed 9-0.
The first reading of an ordinance vacating a portion of West Virginia Avenue to make room for an expansion of the West Virginia Potato Chip Co., which makes Mister Bee Potato Chips, passed 9-0, along with the first reading of an ordinance authorizing an online auction of city property.
City Clerk Connie Shaffer read a proclamation from Joyce recognizing October as Down Syndrome Awareness Month, Learning Disability Awareness Month and National Disability Employment Awareness Month. A copy of the proclamation was presented to representatives of the Arc of the Mid-Ohio Valley, which supports people with disabilities, from infants to senior citizens.
Evan Bevins can be reached at ebevins@newsandsentinel.com.