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Vienna officials say goodbye to late council member

Also discuss Vaccination Incentive Program

During the public forum of the Vienna City Council meeting on Thursday, Chris Mancuso asked council about better usage of the money going into the outdoor workout equipment and the various playground pieces. (Photo by James Dobbs)

VIENNA — On Thursday, Vienna City Council lost council member Mike Elam.

“It’s a shame. Mike was such an active, active dad, coach, family member, whatever you want to call him, and for him to leave us so soon. It’s heartbreaking, it really is, and I don’t know about the rest of you, but I’ve known Mike for as long as he’s been alive,” Mayor Randall Rapp said during Thursday evening’s Vienna City Council meeting in announcing Elam’s passing earlier Thursday.

All flags in Vienna will be lowered to half staff today in honor of Elam.

“… Mike was fun to be around, and I can say that I thoroughly enjoyed every time we had a baseball team in here, where we would give these kids these championship rings, or we would give them a certificate for being … part of our leagues and what have you,” said Rapp.

“Mike was probably the biggest kid among all of them, and it was fun to be a part of that, and I can honestly say it’s a, it’s a shame. We’re gonna miss Mike greatly,” he said.

Toni Tiano, Grant Consultant for the city of Vienna, discussed the Consolidated Annual Performance and Evaluation Report (CAPER) at Thursday’s meeting of Vienna City Council. (Photo by James Dobbs)

Also at Thursday’s meeting, resident Chris Mancuso addressed the council with a list of questions and concerns. One of his concerns was that the playground and outdoor workout equipment, that was up for approval at the meeting, is being utilized by Vienna residents. He also wondered if the vaccination incentive program was the correct way to use government funds.

Toni Tiano, Grant Consultant for the city of Vienna, discussed the Consolidated Annual Performance and Evaluation Report (CAPER) for the city’s CDBG program for the period from Oct. 1, 2020 to June 30, 21. The CAPER is an annual report of the accomplishments of the past year. The timeframe is a nine month period instead of a one year time frame in order to be in line of the same calendar that Parkersburg is uses.

The majority of projects that were completed were housing rehab projects. Eight out of the 10 scheduled projects were completed. The city received $119,975 in COVID relief funds that were put into two different programs, the Small Business Relief Program and the Family Relief Program. Tiano said the money in the Small Business Relief Program helped nine businesses with 34 jobs. The resolution to approve the report was passed unanimously.

The bid from Davis Athletics of $31,708 for the purchase of various playground and outdoor exercise pieces, and the shipping costs and installation of those pieces, passed unanimously. Councilman Jim Leach explained to Mancuso that he believes that the equipment is being used and is in support of the purchase.

The 2021-2022 Internal Budget Revision number one transferred $6,858 to the purchase of the bid for playground and workout equipment, which passed unanimously. Rapp explained that the city has been receiving donations from the Spartan Foundation to improve the park, and that the exercise equipment also helps to keep the seniors active.

Vienna City Councilman Jim Leach, center, gave his opinion on the COVID-19 Vaccination Incentive Program. Also pictured are Councilman Tom Azinger, left, and City Attorney Russell Skogstad. (Photo by James Dobbs)

Rapp mentioned that last week the city office received a notification from its healthcare provider that it will receive one free month of its healthcare premium. He said it accounts for over $100,000. He plans to put forward an incentive for employees.

The Vaccination Incentive Program offers all non-elected, non-seasonal city employees a one-time payment of $1,000 to obtain any of the COVID-19 vaccinations, which include Pfizer, Moderna, or Johnson and Johnson. The employee must provide written proof of full vaccination. This program, includes any employee who has already received the vaccinations, and will end Dec. 31.

“There are lots and lots of cities, that are investing in their employees, and so that is the reason why that you see this on here (the agenda) this evening is, it is an incentive, but without our employees, we cannot run the city of Vienna,” Rapp said. “And I can tell you that we’ve had some difficulty where we’ve had one person get infected, and then we’ve gotten multiple in the same department. And so this is an incentive to get vaccinated, because first, we can’t replace our employees, but the second thing is, we need them. They are the lifeblood of this town, and without them, we can’t do anything. We just can’t.”

The city of Vienna has 83 employees, according to Rapp, this would cost around $83,000 to implement, if everyone received the vaccine.

“We need our employees to get vaccinated, to stay healthy, to keep their co-workers healthy, to keep our community healthy, and by not doing that, not getting vaccinated, they run the risk of going to the hospital,” said Council member Kim Williams.

Williams went on to explain that if council incentivizes the city employees to get vaccinated, what will happen when a COVID-19 booster shot becomes available. She said it is something that people should do in order to protect their co-workers. She also said that it was an inappropriate use of taxpayer dollars.

Rapp explained that in the end, money would be saved by less employees leaving work or spending time out of the office to quarantine and to be tested.

Leach made a motion to table the program, because he did not feel like he had enough information to vote on the matter. The council discussed the matter for a few minutes longer before the vote to table was made. Public Works Director Craig Metz explained that seven of his employees would get the vaccination if they received the $1,000 payout.

The motion to table the program failed. The Vaccination Incentive Program passed 4-1, with Williams dissenting.

The fund allocation of $325,000 from the American Rescue Funds to the Vienna Utility Board will be used for planning, purchasing or leasing equipment, hiring personnel and funding the River Road Water Infrastructure Project. The council feels that this is a necessary water, wastewater, and stormwater project. The entire project will cost $504,000 but the city received $125,000 from the Wood County Commission last week. This passed unanimously.

Jeff Slusher was appointed to the Vienna Board of Parks and Recreation, as the Vienna Recreation and Improvement Association Board representative, to fill the unexpired term of William Morehead. Janette Hart was appointed as the alternate recommendation, of the Vienna Recreation and Improvement Association Board, to fill the same unexpired term.

Chuck Noffsinger was appointed to the Mid-Ohio Valley Transit Authority Board, as the City of Vienna representative, to fill the unexpired term of Nicki Young. Kathy Stoltz was reappointed to the Vienna Civil Service Commission, for a full and regular four-year term to begin at the end of her current term.

James Dobbs can be reached at jdobbs@newsandsentinel.com

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