MINUTES CITY OF OIL CITY COUNCIL MEETING COUNCIL CHAMBERS 4:30 PM MARCH 24, 2025 Meeting called to order with the Pledge of Allegiance by CALL TO ORDER Mr. Kluck at 4:30 PM. Members Present: Mayor Kluck, Councilman Massie, ROLL CALL Councilman Walentosky, Councilman Craig, Councilman Gustafson. Members Absent: None. Recording Secretary: Jena Knight APPROVALOF MINUTES APPROVAL OF MINUTES - REGULAR A motion to Approve the Minutes of the Regular Meeting MEETING - MARCH 10, held March 10, 2025 was made by Councilman Massie, 2025 seconded by Councilman Craig and was approved. REVISION OF AGENDA REVISION OF AGENDA WRITTEN COMMUNICATIONS WRITTEN COMMUNICATIONS The first item was a Communique from the Oil City YMCA Requesting Use of the Mitchell Avenue Ball Field COMMUNIQUE FROM for a T-Ball Program. The field would be used beginning OIL CITY YMCA - USE April 16, 2025 and continue for a six-week period on OF MITCHELL AVENUE Wednesdays. The time for the program is 5:30 p.m. until BALL FIELD FOR T- 8:00 p.m. BALL PROGRAM There has been no problem with this event in the past. A motion to Approve the Request of the Oil City YMCA for Use of the Mitchell Avenue Ball Field for a T-Ball Program beginning April 16, 2025 was made by Councilman Massie, seconded by Councilman Craig and was approved. The next item was a Communique from Grace United COMMUNIQUE FROM Methodist Church Requesting Use of Lot 11 Behind the GRACE UNITED Church on April 4, 2025 for a Confirmation Event. The lot METHODIST CHURCH - would be used from 9:30 a.m. until 2:30 p.m. for the event. USE OF LOT 11 FOR A Council has no problem with this and there would be no CONFIRMATION cost involved. EVENT 1 MINUTES CITY OF OIL CITY COUNCIL MEETING COUNCIL CHAMBERS 4:30 PM MARCH 24, 2025 A motion to Approve the Request of Grace United Methodist Church for Use of Lot 11 for a Confirmation Event on April 4, 2025 from 9:30 a.m. until 2:30 p.m. was made by Councilman Massie, seconded by Councilman Walentosky and was approved. MANAGER'S REPORT MANAGER' 'S REPORT Mr. Schroyer informed Council that, with the enactment of AMUSEMENT DEVICE the amusement tax ordinance, the City has received over UPDATE $23,000.00. The City budgeted $5,000.00. This money will be used for the swimming pool this summer. Everyone who received notices regarding the amusement tax paid. That does not alleviate those who have not received a notice. They will still have an obligation to register their devices. Miss Weidle of the Code Office has done an excellent job with this project. This was a good move for the City. Mayor Kluck commented that he heard that the City of Franklin is considering implementation of this type of ordinance as well. Mr. Schroyer said that this was predicted. Mr. Schroyer thanked Mr. Varsek for his work with the ordinance. He said that he received a call several weeks ago from someone "nitpicking" the ordinance. Mr. Schroyer urged the person to attend a Council meeting to voice an opinion. Councilman Gustafson said he has not heard anything. Mr. Schroyer said that just because an entity did not receive a notice, doesn'tr mean that they don't have the devices. Mr. Schroyer took this opportunity to announce his CITY MANAGER retirement as the City Manager of Oil City. He has gone RETIREMENT over in his mind what his future is as well as that of the ANNOUNCEMENT City. He quoted a sports cliché. It's better to leave one year too early than stay one year too late. He said that it is with great deliberation and thoughtfulness that he formally announced his retirement. His last working day will be October 31, 2025; however, that date is not etched in stone.' ?> He said this depends upon how the succession process works. He went on to say that it is with a deep sense of gratitude that the Mayor and Council ten years ago gave him the opportunity to serve the citizens of the City. He also feels a deep sense of accomplishment, Many good things have 2 MINUTES CITY OF OIL CITY COUNCIL MEETING COUNCIL CHAMBERS 4:30 PM MARCH 24, 2025 been done during his time with the City. Things have been done which he had hoped to get completed. There were some "informal" goals which have been met. The City has an excellent staff. He said that the staffi is the engine of the organization. He said that he "just steers the boat a bit." The Oil City community has been gracious. He has lived here for almost ten years. It's almost like a second home. There is still work to be done and things which need to be looked at. He said that, perhaps, someone with a fresh perspective and a different set ofeyes will be needed. He went on to say that he is proud of the fact that, for each of the years he was with the City, there was a balanced budget. There was a significant amount of infrastructure developed and equipment'vehicles purchased. The Fire Department staff have said that this is the best that they have been equipped in years. New vehicles and equipment have been acquired for all departments. He said that there is uncertainty at the federal level. He may be directly affected where Medicare and social security are concerned. He has been approached about going into politics. He is not inclined that way. Mr. Schroyer then thanked the Mayor and Council, as well as previous members of Council, for selecting him and giving him the opportunity to work for the City. He also thanked Council for allowing him to leave of his own accord. He said that, often times, the decision is made for the manager. He will have his ten years in on July 13. He will be "on board" through mid to late October. It will depend upon how the selection process goes. The Mayor and Council then thanked Mr. Schroyer for his years of service to the City. Mayor Kluck remarked that he believes that he and Mr. Schroyer have worked well together. Mr. Schroyer said that he hopes that, in the future, decisions regarding the City will not be political and will be in the best interests of the citizens. Councilman Gustafson said that Mr. Schroyer will be difficult to replace. He has been through the selection process in the past. It is not easy. He feels that Mr. Schroyer has served the community well. The City is now in a better fiscal position. Much has been accomplished over the last ten years. The City is not in debt. 3 MINUTES CITY OF OIL CITY COUNCIL MEETING COUNCIL CHAMBERS 4:30 PM MARCH 24, 2025 Mr. Schroyer commented that when he began working for the City, there were roughly 6 or 8 major loans outstanding. They were paid off. Millions of dollars were put into the City's infrastructure, as well as hundreds of thousands of dollars into equipment. Heis proud of all ofthis. Mr. Schroyer said that the City "navigated through" COVID. All of the City employees worked when other companies shut their doors. Now, it is difficult to get federal and state workers back in the offices. He is proud of the fact that the City employees served the citizens well. Councilman Gustafson asked Mr. Schroyer how many total years he has in municipal government. Mr. Schroyer said that he started out as a truck driver and laborer. He worked in Parks and Rec. He started in municipal management in 1990 or 1991. He said that he probably has over forty years in municipal government work overall. Councilman Massie said that if anyone asked him to describe Mr. Schroyer's leadership and work, it would be outstanding. Mr. Schroyer thanked him. Councilman Craig said that the behind-the-scenes work is tremendous. It takes a lot to run the City. Mayor Kluck said that is correct; there is a lot more to running the City than people think. Mr. Schroyer said there is a lot going on currently, to include issues with the IBEW. The firefighters' contract will be coming up as well. CURRENT BUSINESS CURRENT BUSINESS The first item was a Presentation Regarding City-Owned PRESENTATION- Properties. Becky Anderson and Kelly Ryen of CITY-OWNED Community Development were present to speak. Mr. PROPERTIES Schroyer said that this item has been discussed over the last several meetings. He indicated that Council had sent to them a spreadsheet identifying City-owned properties. This includes properties which could potentially be sold. He went on to say that this discussion would be done in three phases. One is identification of the properties. The second phase would be properties identified for demolition. The third phase deals with properties which could potentially be burnt. Chief Alex will speak to the potential burning process. There have been seven to ten properties identified in various forms offinancing. 4 MINUTES CITYOF OIL CITY COUNCIL MEETING COUNCIL CHAMBERS 4:30 PM MARCH 24, 2025 Mrs. Anderson informed Council that, before them, Council has a packet. The first several pages are a master list. The next pages include multi-colors. Anything which is blue in color is a City infrastructure. Green designates any park or greenspace which is owned by the City and is maintained by the City. The color pink denotes CDBG- owned properties. Currently, she and Mrs. Ryen are talking with Mr. Varsek as to how those properties should be handled. There may be further information in May. More information will be forthcoming. Mrs. Anderson said that anything highlighted in yellow are properties which have been deemed to be able to be sold. This is the type of property which Council has been asking about. Councilman Gustafson said that there has been discussion about selling lots which are City-owned. He asked what the market value of a property is that can be sold. Mr. Varsek replied that the value is $6,000.00. Councilman Gustafson then asked if a property valued at that amount or lower can be sold either privately by the City or at auction. Mr. Varsek said that was correct. Mr. Schroyer then asked Mr. Varsek if the City could approach a homeowner and offer them a neighboring piece of property. Mrs. Ryen said that a reassessment would need to be done on the properties. This would find the fair market value. Mr. Varsek then said that the current assessed value would be multiplied by the common level ratio to get to the fair market value. He said that the problem is that the assessed value may be somewhere too close to the $6,000.00 threshold sO that ifyou do apply the common level ratio which exceeds the $6,000.00, then that is when problems occur. Councilman Gustafson remarked that Mrs. Anderson worked up a market value on most all of the properties. Mrs. Anderson said that these are the assessed values on Venango County Parcel Viewer. Mrs. Ryen said that Parcel Viewer does not give a date as to the values. She said that the current market value will have to be calculated as Mr. Varsek stated. Councilman Walentosky thanked staff for putting the spreadsheet together. He said it was a lot of work. Mrs. Ryen said that it shows that there are a lot of properties which need to be held on to. There was a lot of work done across the departments. Mrs. Anderson spoke to many of 5 MINUTES CITY OF OIL CITY COUNCIL MEETING 4:30 PM COUNCIL CHAMBERS MARCH 24, 2025 the City departments to see why certain properties are still owned by the City. The spreadsheet gives a clear picture of having to retain more than would be thought. Councilman Walentosky commented that there is a ten-acre parcel on Manning Street which is owned by the City. He asked if it is a hillside parcel. The answer was yes. Mr. Schroyer said that a lot oft the parcels are "leftover" pieces. Some are not really usable. There are some attractive properties which could be marketable. Councilman Gustafson said that they could become part of a neighboring parcel. There are some parcels which do not conform with zoning and nothing could be done with them. Councilman Walentosky commented about a large lot on Graff Street. Mrs. Anderson said that it consists of a lot of small parcels. It is not one large lot. Councilman Craig asked if they could be combined into one large lot. Mrs. Anderson said it would be at Council's discretion as to how things would be handled. Mrs. Ryen spoke with Mr. Varsek as to how this would set a precedent where the sale of property is concerned. A disposition policy would need to be developed. It would need to spell out how things would be handled each time a property would be sold. There would be staff changes, etc. Councilman Walentosky asked about the parcel on Bissell Avenue. Apparently, itis a hillside. The City owns it. Itis between two houses. It could be purchased by a neighbor. Mr. Schroyer said that, some time ago, Mr. Varsek had been working with the parcel where the Oil City Hospital had been located. The City does own some of that property. There were several pieces which were owned by various heirs of the Hasson Family. Mr. Varsek tried to get that taken care of. Mr. Schroyer believed that the heirs thought the property was valued much higher than what it is. Mr. Schroyer thinks that parcel of land would be ideal for some kind of apartment complex. Mr. Varsek put a lot of time and effort into trying to get the titles cleaned up for that parcel of land. There are a couple of heirs who think the property is worth a lot of money. It is not. This is something to think about if anyone is looking for property to develop. 6 MINUTES CITY OF OIL CITY COUNCIL MEETING COUNCIL CHAMBERS 4:30 PM MARCH 24, 2025 Mr. Varsek said that he was able to secure deeds from just about everyone in the Hasson Family, with the exception of a small fractional interest which is owned by four or five different family members scattered around the country. There was one person in Australia. Those are the only holdouts and the interest is sO small that a small interest could be partitioned off and give them a small piece. The title is almost "sewn up." 77 Councilman Gustafson commented that this all came about when Captain Hasson conveyed the property for the hospital. The stipulation was that, ift the property would no longer be used for hospital purposes, that it revert back to his heirs. Mr. Varsek said that most of the heirs have been very gracious during this process. Councilman Gustafson remarked that the Manning Street property is ten acres. That is sizable. Mr. Schroyer recommended that Council review the information and have a follow-up discussion at the next Council meeting. There have been six properties identified for demolition purposes. Mrs. Ryen stated that the Redevelopment Authority has sent a letter of intent to purchase 14 Wilson Avenue through the Venango County Landbank at judicial sale. That is a property which was a boarding house. It will be expensive to raze the building. The City may consider assisting with the demolition costs. Mrs. Ryen went on to say that there are two properties which could be immediately taken down. They would be repository purchases. It could be done with CDBG funds. A letter of intent would need to be delivered to the Venango Landbank to purchase them from the repository by the end ofI March. Mrs. Ryen said they are also looking at 69 Grove Avenue and 12 Mineral Street. 69 Grove Avenue is in judicial sale and it is hoped that it can be the subject of a controlled burn. She said that the firefighters have looked at several properties and it is one that they believe could be burnt. Chief Alex said that several different properties have been looked at for burn. There would be a lot of hurdles to overcome, such as power lines, etc. He said that 69 Grove is a large house at the dead end of the street. There is nothing around the perimeter of the house. They should be 7 MINUTES CITY OF OIL CITY COUNCIL MEETING COUNCIL CHAMBERS 4:30 PM MARCHI 24, 2025 able to burn it as part of training. Mrs. Ryen said that some things would need to be done in order for DEP to approve the burn. Chief Alex said that an asbestos inspection would need to be done. It is sometimes difficult to find a company to do this. Chief Alex then said that the firefighters will be doing a training in the near future in Rouseville involving a burn. It was $600.00 to get the asbestos inspection done there. After that, there will be some permit applications and a few other things which DEP would want. Mr. Schroyer asked Chief Alex if that was the only house which the department would like to burn. Chief Alex said that is correct. It's the best at this point to burn. It is accessible from Butler Alley. Councilman Gustafson remarked that there probably aren't many houses left on Grove. Chief Alex said that there are more than what people would think. Most are accessible from Butler Alley. Mr. Schroyer said that now the City has a better idea of what it can do going forward. Mayor Kluck asked if there is anything to do with the Phase Two properties. Mrs. Ryen said that Phase Two is for future consideration. There are comments as to code history, historic reference, etc. More information will need to be gathered. This will give the Code Department more to work with. Councilman Gustafson said that the spreadsheet gave him more concise information regarding the properties. Mrs. Ryen stated that the DCED is not giving clear information as to the disposition of properties. There will be a training that she will attend in May which should shed more. light on the proçess. Councilman Craig asked if Mrs. Ryen will work on the disposition policy. Mrs. Ryen said that was up to Mr. Schroyer. The next item was Permission to Authorize Advertising for PERMISSION TO the 2025 Paving Program. Mr. Schroyer said that there will AUTHORIZE be a large paving program for 2025. The total for the ADVERTISING FOR program will be $683,186.10. There are several streets and 2025 PAVING 8 MINUTES CITY OF OIL CITY COUNCIL MEETING COUNCIL CHAMBERS 4:30 PM MARCH 24, 2025 alleys which will be paved this year. Mr. Schroyer asked PROGRAM that the Mayor and Council approve the advertising of the project. A motion to Approve Permission to Authorize Advertising for the 2025 Paving Program was made by Councilman Massie, seconded by Councilman Gustafson and was approved. Mr. Schroyer said that he appreciated Council allowing staff to prepare the paving programs. FISCAL, CONTRACTUAL, AND BUDGETARY FISCAL, TRANSFERS CONTRACTUAL AND BUDGETARY ANSFERS The following Vouchers were presented for Council's review and approval. VOUCHERS General Fund $ 291,678.24 Water and Sewer 190,990.70 Capital Reserve Account 85,638.67 Arts Council 1,987.45 Payroll Account 92,255.71 Industrial Park 4,873.94 A motion to Approve the Vouchers was made by Councilman Massie, seconded by Councilman Craig and was approved. RESOLUTIONS. & ORDINANCES RESOLUTIONS & ORDINANCES INFORMATIONAL INFORMATIONAL PUBLIC COMMENTS PUBLIC COMMENTS Dave Riley was in attendance and stated that he is not in DAVE RILEY - IOOF favor of the City purchasing the IOOF Building. BUILDING COMMENTS Councilman Massie said that the City wants to tear it down. Mr. Riley doesn't think it is right to purchase it and tear it down. It should be up to Mr. Adamovsky to tear it down. He also fears that if it is torn down, debris will land in Oil Creek and contaminate it. The two adjoining buildings 9 MINUTES CITY OF OIL CITY COUNCIL MEETING COUNCIL CHAMBERS 4:30 PM MARCH 24, 2025 could be damaged as well. He doesn't feel it a good idea for the City to obtain it. He said that, even ifi it is grant money to raze it, it is still taxpayer funds. Mayor Kluck said that, yes, grant money is taxpayer money, but if the City doesn't take it, someone else will. Joseph Sanfilippo spoke about wanting to get involved with JOSEPH SANFILIPPO the City. He said that he feels that the City should pressure COMMENTS building owners to fix condemned properties. He feels that the City should compel owners to obtain bonds and get contractors to complete work which needs to be done on the buildings. There would be no need to have violations or notices on their doors. Mr. Sanfilippo also wants to find a way for volunteers to be able to do work in the City. Councilman Walentosky said that there is too much liability for this to occur. Councilman Craig said that if grant money is involved, a project needs to be put out for bid. Mrs. Ryen said that is correct and a certified contractor, with the proper insurance, is necessary. Mr. Sanfilippo would like to see a program where, at least one local person can get aj job. Mayor Kluck said that, if a local contractor is awarded a job, at least perhaps one local person is employed for the job. Mr. Sanfilippo then asked why some of the City-owned vacant lots cannot be "given away. 99 It would boost property values if people could acquire lots for combination into their current lots. Councilman Gustafson said that, many years ago, there was discussion about instituting a program where the County would turn over all of the repository lots to the RDA to dispense of and get into the hands of neighbors. The solicitor at the time said that the properties which are taken through tax sale for combination was not advised. There could be a "cloudy" title on a parcel. If there is a clear title on a home and combine it with a title on a vacant parcel, there could be problems. There needs to be a mechanism to have a clear title. The reason there may be a cloudy title is that there may be heirs from a previous owner who are not aware that the property was being sold. Someone could step forward and make a claim. Ifa loan were to be made, a bank wouldn't make a loan on a cloudy title. There needs to be a mechanism to clear the tax sale properties. 10 MINUTES CITY OF OIL CITY COUNCIL MEETING COUNCIL CHAMBERS 4:30 PM MARCH 24, 2025 Mr. Schroyer reminded all that, on April 14, Rep. James and Sen. Hutchinson will be present and this type of thing can be discussed. Councilman Gustafson said that it will be helpful to have these gentlemen in attendance to assist with these questions. Mr. Sanfilippo thanked the Fire Department for all that they do. Mrs. Felmlee informed Council that the Electronics Day UPDATE - RECYCLING will be May 16 from 8:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. The Tire DATES FOR 2025 Collection Day will be on September 12 from 8:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. Mrs. Ryen then informed Council that there will be a Public PUBLIC HEARING Hearing just prior to the April 14, 2025 Council meeting at NOTIFICATION - APRIL 4:00 p.m. This will be related to a CDBG modification. 15, 2025 CITY COUNCIL REPORIS/COMMENTS CITY COUNCIL REPORIS/COMMENTS Jackson Dilks informed Council that the Hometown Pride Project is still going on. They will offer City flags for sale. HOMETOWN PRICE They are still in need of funds for start-up costs. They have PROJECT UPDATE had some generous individuals assist. EXECUTIVE SESSION EXECUTIVE SESSION An Executive Session was called at 5:22 p.m. to discuss Property Acquisition and On-Going Zoning. No vote was taken. ADJOURNMENT ADJOURNMENT There being no further business to come before Council, a motion to adjourn the meeting at 6:02 p.m. was made by Councilman Massie, seconded by Councilman Craig. Motion approved. PERSONS IN ATTENDANCE Mark Schroyer, Staff Robert Varsek, Staff Kelly Ryen, Staff Becky Anderson, Staff Terri Felmlee, Staff Jeff Wenner, Staff 11 MINUTES CITY OF OIL CITY COUNCIL MEETING COUNCIL CHAMBERS 4:30 PM MARCH 24, 2025 Michelle Hoovler, Staff Chris Gorman, Staff Cory Ruditis, Staff Tim Alex, Staff Yvonne Greene, Staff Paul Myers * Dave Riley Joseph Sanfilippo 12 MINUTES CITYOF OIL CITY COUNCIL MEETING COUNCIL CHAMBERS 4:30 PM MARCH 24, 2025 APPROVED BY COUNCIL THIS 14th DAY OF April 2025 Jonn V. Kluck, Mayor I hereby certify the foregoing to be a true and correct copy oft the minutes of the Council of] March 24, 2025. meeting MR ye Mark G. Schroyer, Çity Clerk 13