[ad_1]
T-L Photo/KAILEY CARPINO
Elizabeth Dugmore, left, council at large, hugs Bellaire Councilman Jerry Fisher after declaring Dec. 22 as Jerry Fisher Day.
BELLAIRE — Bellaire Village Council met in regular session Thursday and officially made Dec. 22 ‘Jerry Fisher Day’ to honor Councilman Jerry Fisher’s retirement from council.
Elizabeth Dugmore, council at large, held back tears while reading the proclamation.
“Jerry Fisher is a life-long resident of the Village of Bellaire and has made Bellaire his home in every sense of the word,” she read.
The proclamation recognized Fisher’s “dedication” to the village and his service as mayor and council member.
“Jerry Fisher has made a lifetime commitment to bettering the lives of the residents of Bellaire through countless efforts, activities and projects throughout the village,” the proclamation read.
“Retirement is a milestone achievement that signifies the end of a rewarding career, but the beginning of a well-deserved new chapter, one we hope is filled with rest, relaxation, family and golf,” it states.
Fisher’s term ends at the end of the year. He did not run for reelection and said that he is excited to retire and spend time with his family.
“I’m going to miss you every day,” Fisher said to his fellow council members.
“We’ve had our differences, but we’ve all got them straightened out. Nobody’s gone away mad, and as soon as we go through that door, we were all fine again. So I really appreciate the fact that I had some good people to work with all the 12 years,” he said.
Bill Schmitt Jr. will be taking his seat in January.
Schmitt attended Thursday’s meeting, and said that he is looking forward to joining council.
“I appreciate what everybody does, and I can’t wait to be a part of council and try to be a part of the solution and not the problem,” he said.
Councilman Robert “Bubba” Kapral said that Schmitt will be “replacing a legend.”
“I got very big shoes to fill. I appreciate you, Mr. Fisher, for all you’ve done for the community in Bellaire, Ohio and I can only hope to do half as good as what you have done,” Schmitt said.
Fisher told Schmitt that if he needs any advice or help to give him a call.
In other news, councilwoman Janet Richardson said that the village submitted an application to House of Representative Ron Ferguson’s office for the pickleball court and amphitheater project on Monday.
“The total amount was $1.4 million, but we pulled out the roof, the roofing, the top covering, because it was a little high,” she explained.
She said that the project will cost $600,000 without the roof and roof supports.
“Hopefully, if we don’t get the whole thing, we can still get a piece of that and do that sort of thing as a second phase,” she said.
Richardson said that she expects to hear back from Ferguson’s office next month.
“We’re pretty excited. I look forward to what Ferguson has to say,” she said.
Mayor Edward Marling said that he recently talked to fire chief Tim Bell and that the firehouse is in need of repair.
“They had to set the trucks at an angle so that they could get them out one door,” Marling said.
Marling said that the four doors on the bays need to be replaced.
He also said that the firehouse also needs four new man doors. Marling said that the one door in the front with the glass panel should be replaced with a solid door.
“They went in one day and found a homeless guy laying in between the doors,” he said.
He said that the glass door doesn’t seem to lock properly, and the next door would not be difficult to kick in.
Marling said that he has to look into what the doors will cost.
Councilman Mike Doyle said that a group of students are interested in touring the water treatment plant. He said that water plant workers agreed to allow the students to tours, but Doyle is going to check with Solicitor Paul Stecker to see if the students will need to sign a release before the tour.
Dugmore said that the village needs to post information on Facebook about holiday trash pickup and when the municipal building will be closed for the holidays.
Officials plan to post the information as soon as possible.
Council voted to approve the finances for 2023 and the temporary budget for 2024.
[ad_2]
Source link