West Liberty Village Council Monday evening unanimously approved a resolution to declare the necessity to levy a 1.15-mill five-year Parks and Recreation levy, generating about $30,000 a year, for the spring ballot.
Jill McKelvey, councilwoman, said the levy is for the purpose of making parks and recreation-related improvements including those to Dodge and Lions parks.
“We didn’t want to take (that money) from the general fund,” she explained. “If (the levy is) approved we would set up a parks and rec board … We wouldn’t be taking from another need that’s essential.”
Council also discussed potentially allowing Lions Park to have a beer garden for limited hours during one day of the Labor Day Festival.
Council members Jayne Griffth and Al Hyland both mentioned receiving resident concerns about allowing a beer garden in West Liberty.
Griffth said as a dry town, people thought West Liberty shouldn’t allow the beer garden.
McKelvey said an ordinance from 1989 does state no alcohol is allowed at Lions Park.
But Police Chief Shane Oelker said there is no law prohibiting it.
Lions Club President Jake Vitt said the idea for the beer garden is meant to keep things new and interesting.
“We’re trying to progressively think for the Labor Day Festival so it doesn’t become stagnant and die,” he said. “We need people to come with new interest. Antique tractors are not drawing people. We are going towards the concerts and entertainment route. That’s brought us really better crowds. The next step — and other towns around us do it too — (is to) offer a beer garden … It will help bring more people in.”
Griffith said although she has nothing against the idea of the beer garden, if asked she will vote against it in order to represent her constituents who have come to her and voiced their opposition to it.
Hyland concurred.
“A lot of older people are just not for it,” he said.
McKelvey said she respected their sentiments, but questioned what the outcome would be.
“I think that in a time period when communities are dying from social groups … do we want to put a roadblock in front of them because we are afraid of pushback?”
Hyland also expressed interest in looking into body cams for the police department.
“I’d really like to look into if Shane wants a body cam for his people,” he said. “We could look at how much they’ve saved police officers in a shooting (situation). The technology is really, really good. I’d love to see our police department with body cams.”
Council members took time towards the end of the meeting to recognize outgoing Mayor of 11 years Greg Hostetler for his service to West Liberty.
Hostetler said he is thankful to everyone who has been on council and the people who have taken the time to make the community a better place to live.
“Sometimes people don’t realize how much we care about the people and how much we try to do the right things,” he said. “I can’t thank you enough for looking outside the box … It’s been a labor of love … Now, I just want to be a face in the crowd for awhile.”
In other business, council also approved a resolution directing the advertisement of bids for Phase Two of the police department renovations and an ordinance authorizing the mayor and clerk to enter into a contract for engineering services for those renovations.