MEMORANDUM 

TO:            City Council Members/Department/Division Heads 

FROM:      Douglas L. Lewis, City Manager 

SUBJECT: Weekly Update 

BROWN AVENUE: On Friday, July 8, 2005, I met with Joe Mayernick of Growth Partnership and Julie Michael Smith, Regional Representative for the Governor’s Economic Development Office, regarding funding to provide truck access to Maple Avenue. We discussed possible alternative routes for the truck traffic and will be exploring alternatives based on feasibility, impact, and the cost of the improvements.  After we have costed out the various alternatives, we will be meeting with Mr. Mayernick and Ms. Smith to identify funding sources.   

CSX RAILROAD CROSSING CLOSINGS: The CSX railroad tracks will be closed starting Monday, July 11, 2005 at the intersections of Parrish Road, Whitney Street and Mill Street. 

LIABILITY INSURANCE RENEWAL: We recently renewed the City’s property & liability insurance policy with the OGRMP (Ohio Government Risk Management Plan). The City's insurance agent, Mr. Patrick Hickey of Love Insurance Agency, obtained several quotes from various insurance providers, including Scottsdale, St. Paul, and Arrowhead Underwriters.   

Arrowhead initially came in with the lowest quote of approximately $135,000 annually. OGRMP's initially quoted $143,847. Mr. Hickey advised OGRMP of Arrowhead's quote and was subsequently able to negotiate a lower quote from OGRMP for $134,712. After expressing displeasure with the quote, Mr. Hickey again went back to the OGRMP and was able to negotiate a further reduction of $1,500, for a total quote of $133,262. 

The City's premium for last year was $125,973. This year's quote of $133,262 is $7,289 more than or 5.8% higher than last year. This is contributed to the higher loss ratio than last year (50% this year compared with 5% last year).  Due to the types of  claims from last year, they appear to be one time incidents that we hope to avoid in the future.   

DORMAN ROAD CLOSING:  Dorman Road will be closed at Welton Road on July 11^th for the installation of the new force main sewer line for the pump station. 

FLOWER  BOX PLANTING:  The Public Works Department was very helpful getting the flower boxes in the downtown area planted prior to the July 4^th holiday.  They provided crews to haul dirt, mulch and helped with planting. The LECI also provided workers to assist with this project.  

Much thanks goes to K-Mart for their generous donation of flowers. We also need to thank Kreger’s True Value for donating fertilizer and Sasquatch Farms for providing discounted flowers.     

POLICE CALLS/CITATIONS/ARRESTS:  During the week of June 24 through July 1, the Police Department logged 471 service calls.  They responded to 10 animal complaints, 10 ATV/dirt bike calls, 17 disturbance calls, 45 registration checks, 28 suspicious activity calls, 79 traffic stops and issued 10 traffic violations and 11 oversize/overweight citations. 

During the week of July 1 through July 8, the Police Department logged 498 service calls and issues 81 arrests/citations.  These statistics include 31 speeding violations, six disorderly conduct citations, 14 disturbance calls, 12 domestic situations, 16 fireworks complaints, 10 juvenile complaints and 14 animal calls. 

EMERGENCY VEHICLES OUT OF SERVICE:  Two of three Fire Rescue Squads are out of service. Repairs are being made as quickly as possible. One squad requires an engine and the other needs a transmission. 

COMMERCIAL FIRE INSPECTIONS:  Inspection are currently underway in selected industrial and apartment complexes within the City of Conneaut.  The Fire Department has been very active in working with owners to have commercial structures within the City of Conneaut brought up to code and generally cleaned up.   

ALL NATURAL HAZARD MITIGATION:  Fire Chief Bim Orrenmaa attended the All Natural Hazard Mitigation meeting at the EMA office this week. The series of meetings will provide a stand-alone document to explain how communities plan to address disasters and obtain additional funding for mitigation. 

NEW POLICE SERGEANT:  After thorough testing and an assessment center by Kent State University, I am pleased to announce the appointment of Anthony Buzecan as our newest Sergeant in the Police Department.  Congratulations!! 

VIDEO ARRAIGNMENT: Judge Tom Harris has informed me that the video arraignment system is functional. The new video arraignment system will require less time because prisons are arraigned from the jail.  Much thanks goes to Judge Harris for purchasing the video arraignment system.       

CHARTER CAPTAINS:  Thanks goes to the Conneaut Charter Captains and Snug Harbor for promoting the City of Conneaut.  Earlier this week a group of approximately 60 well drillers from Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Eastern Kentucky and Virginia came to

Conneaut for the fishing. They chartered 8 boats and spent money in Conneaut.   

MARK YOUR CALENDARS: 

AMERICAN RED CROSS BLOOD DRIVE:  July 14, 2005 at the CHRC from 1:00 - 6:00 p.m. 

KELLY MILLER CIRCUS: July 27, 2005 at 4:30 and 7:00 p.m. in Lakeview Park  

CONNEAUT NIGHT AT THE JAKE:  The Conneaut Chamber of Commerce has a limited number of tickets for Conneaut Night at the Jake on August 2, 2005 at 5:00 p.m.  If you are interested, please contact Mr. Geoff Klein at 593-2402. 

CONNEAUT APPRECIATION DAYS:  August 3^rd – 14^th, 2005.  Contact the Conneaut Chamber of Commerce for more information.  

CONNEAUT CHAMBER OF COMMERCE APPRECIATION BREAKFAST: August 4, 2005 at 7:30 a.m. at the Villa at the Lake.  The retail marketing analysis will be the topic of discussion.   Please let me know if you plan on attending.  

SENIORS TOGETHER LUNCHEON:  August 10, 2005 at 11:30 a.m. at the CHRC.    

EMPLOYEE PICNIC:  August 19, 2005 from 12:00 – 4:00 p.m. at Township Park, Lower Pavilion. 

D-DAY EVENT:  September 17, 2005 at 12:00 and 4:00 p.m. at Conneaut Township Park