Councilmember Woodruff’s resignation accepted
The West Liberty Village Council had a full agenda at their regular meeting on Monday, Feb. 10. Included was Mayor Brad Hudson’s announcement that Mike Woodruff had tendered his resignation as a councilmember in a letter that morning.
With that in mind, the council will inform residents of the opening with the plan to interview applicants before their next meeting on Monday, Feb. 24.
After initially voting against the issue in November 2022, the council decided it was time to reconsider the idea of allowing residents to own chickens and ducks. Scott Woodruff, code enforcement officer, brought up the subject during his updates.
“I would suggest if we go this route (the yard) has to be fenced in,” Woodruff said. “It should be six feet (tall) and into the ground so they don’t get in the neighbor’s yard.”
He also recommended regularly renewed permits, that owners have the right coop and a proper method to get rid of feces, and no roosters. Mostly, he encouraged strict guidelines.
“I’m already chasing vehicles,” he concluded. “I don’t want to be chasing chickens.”
Councilmember Trent Spriggs offered to take on the chicken issue.
Regarding the aforementioned vehicles, Woodruff told the council he had 43 cars towed last year and has approximately 30 on his list with about 20 that need to be towed right now.
When asked, he said the criteria is cars parked on village streets and properties that can’t move or operate, can’t start or run, and have expired tags are going against village ordinances. Cars that don’t run must be covered.
Woodruff requested a meeting with Hudson and Chris Moell, village solicitor, to create a violation letter that’s “more legally written” and includes penalties for repeat offenders. In addition, he’d like to find a way to speed up the zoning appeals process.
Finally, Woodruff addressed the issue of feral cats in the village. He said he’s running into them nonstop and has talked to Lee Gaines, a licensed wildlife trapper, about it. Gaines has taken cats and had them spayed but it’s still a problem. Especially, according to Police Chief Shane Oelker, on West Columbus Street.
“The problem,” Oelker interjected, “is these cats can’t be domesticated.”
This led to a discussion of another West Liberty wildlife problem: the buzzards living in the dilapidated old school building on West Columbus. Because they’re a protected species, these large birds have to be gone before demolition begins.
The council received a quote of $9,000 to safely get rid of them. Councilmember Jayne Griffith said other methods include loud music, cannons, a “sky dancer” or reflective, inflatable bird deterrent. They are also allowed to kill one bird and hang it to scare off other buzzards.
West Liberty is on the list to have the school demolished within the next year or two. Considering the danger the building poses to curious children and other visitors, it can’t happen soon enough.
Fire Department Update
Fire Chief Darin Leach asked the council to approve the application of resident Treven Marchal as a member of the fire department, pending background clearance. The request passed.
Leach said the cam phasers in his 2021 vehicle are bad and need to be replaced. Council approved a $3,900 quote to have that fixed. He also asked for maintenance on their 27-year-old truck, which “needs some TLC.”
Finally, Leach told the board they have a new compressor in and the old one was pulled out and put in a back room.
Fairview Cemetery
Jeff Vernon, cemetery trustee president, had good news and bad news as it relates to the trees in the cemetery. The bad news was a forester told them several trees were not in good shape and had to be removed. That led them to cut down 10 last year with another eight to 10 needing to be taken out.
With that in mind, they purchased and planted 10 trees in 2024 and will do more this year.
The trustees did an informal study to see how their rates compare to other cemeteries and discovered they were “in-line with everybody else.”
“We will try to stay within our budget this year,” Vernon stated, then added, “The woman who gave the farm to the cemetery was a visionary. Many don’t have that source of income. They’re struggling, so we’re blessed that way.”
Other Business
- Jennifer Littic, who lives on Ricketts Road, addressed the council about the fact that her family was recently without water for over a month after they weren’t allowed to use their well due to contamination. She was looking for options and said she doesn’t want to “waste 10 grand on a new well.”
She continued, “I don’t understand the benefits we get from being in the village? It’s been a very frustrating circumstance.”
Hudson offered to meet with Littic to see what the village can do to help the situation. - The village approved resolution 2025-R6, which extends Moell’s contract with them for another two years. This includes a $50 a month raise.
- Oelker said he received one more quote for the cruiser but asked the council to accept the one for $24,643 from Parr in Galloway. With that, he stated, they should be set regarding vehicles until 2028.
- In addition, Oelker said he is meeting with the Lions Club about the annual fireworks display to have his name removed from the event, even though he would still be involved.
He will also talk with the Club and the West Liberty Business Association about the fireworks show, which will take place June 28 for $4,000 or $5,000. - The village council discussed the pros and cons of hiring a new administrator. Pros included having someone who could write grants, interact with departments to help them run more efficiently, save on overtime and help with faster decisions.
As for cons, they expressed concerns about who they would get, how much it would cost, and how the wrong person could turn it into a power play.
Council plans to create a job description and go from there. - Hudson said he was able to apply for phase two of a watershed project to shore up the banks of Mad River and Onion Creek at Lions Park. He referred to a potential grant to cover that from a program that has $2.7 million available.
- Finally, the council discussed making street signs easier to read after a bus driver approached Griffith about the problem. Though regular bus drivers know their routes, substitutes might have trouble, especially if they can’t read street signs.
Council plans to look into replacing all the signs over the next few years with something more legible.
The next meeting is 7 p.m. Monday, Feb. 24.