Mayor Duncan asked the committee members to do self-introductions. He asked if there were any suggested edits to the September 12, 2023 meeting minutes. There being no edits, Mayor Duncan asked for a motion to approve those minutes. Motion to approve by Mr. Boose; second by Mr. Dudding. Upon viva voce vote, motion passed and the minutes were approved.

Mayor Duncan invited Mr. Klopsch to make opening comments and deliver the meeting presentation.

Mr. Klopsch began the meeting by stating that if not for the $1.1 million that will go uncollected in 2024 due to the property tax issue, 2024 revenues and expenses would likely be balanced. The property tax issue will be discussed later in the meeting. He then discussed the following:

• ➤ Family Fall Festival/Scarecrow Row: This continues to be a great community event. There were 25 scarecrows built on Shafor Boulevard this year.
• ➤ Electricity Purchasing… Aggregation Program: Oakwood’s electricity energy aggregation program is an opt-in program so citizens can choose to join the program, stay with AES, or possibly find better rates by using the State of Ohio’s Apples to Apples website to compare different contracts. Oakwood residents can enroll in the electricity energy aggregation program with the MVCC contract prices until November 15, 2023.
• ➤ Far Hills Storm Sewer Replacement: The Far Hills Storm Sewer Replacement project is moving along. The construction is expected to be completed by the end of November or the beginning of December.
• ➤ Five Points Traffic Intersection: City staff presented a grant application to ODOT officials. A decision on whether ODOT grant money will be awarded for the potential roundabout project is expected by late 2023 or early 2024.
• ➤ Rotary HAZMAT Program: This program began in 2008 and continues to be highly successful. Volunteer Oakwood Rotarians pick up large quantities of hazardous material on a quarterly basis for drop-off at the Montgomery County Refuse Transfer Station where they are properly disposed of. The County may begin charging for the disposal of hazardous waste material in 2026.
• ➤ 3.75 Mill Property Tax Levy: The levy renewal will not be on the November 7, 2023 ballot. City Council properly passed the appropriate legislation, but the ordinance requesting to place the issue on the ballot was mistakenly sent to the Auditor’s office rather than the Board of Elections. The city plans to place the issue on the March 19, 2024 ballot and to request the same amount of tax revenue as the current issue, which will result in a lower millage rate due to the new triennial property valuations. The city would not seek any additional revenue from Oakwood taxpayers.
• ➤ Water System Infrastructure: The city continues to analyze Oakwood’s public utility infrastructure and develop improvement projects, particularly with the water, sanitary sewer, and stormwater underground piping. Prior to 1953, the city of Oakwood purchased all of its water from the city of Dayton. In 1953, two wells were drilled on the city-owned property at 120 Springhouse Road and the city started producing some of its own water. Three new wells were drilled at Springhouse in 1965 and the water production increased. The city currently has eight water production wells and has produced nearly all of its own water over the last 20-plus years. The water tower at Fairridge Park provides for the pressure in the system and is in good shape. A major rehabilitation project was completed on the tower in 1996 and it has held up very well. Similar to CenterPoint’s major gas line replacement project, which should be completed at the end of this year, the old cast-iron water pipes in town will need to be rebuilt at some point. Mr. Klopsch displayed a line graph showing the number of water main breaks over the past 12 years. The graph does not identify any trends or show evidence that the piping needs to be replaced right now. A multi-year long-term plan is being developed to systematically work towards the updates.