On Thursday we saw a lot of the items approved in our 2021 Capital Improvements budget come before us for final approval and purchase. This includes the AV equipment upgrades needed for Council to return to Chambers and continue to stream our meetings to the public. I also spoke with the Service Director this past week about the ceiling repairs needed and they are finalizing bids for that project and expect it can move forward in the next few weeks. Other items include a new snowplow, a new ambulance, a new bucket truck, and 4 new police cars. These pieces of equipment help improve the operations for our Police, Fire, and Service Departments. There was also the approval for the City Engineers to go out to bid for the large stormwater projects, water line improvements, and improvements to the Graham Road/Fishcreek Road intersection. These will provide improvements across the City, in Ward 2 we will see a stormwater project on Silver Springs Drive to better direct water runoff from that neighborhood.
Council also approved a new touch-free car wash on Kent Road to be next to the Taco Bell. I know many members of the public sometimes do not understand why there is approval of a type of business that we already have several of in Stow. The reality is that the zoning of land is what allows for approval of types of businesses in certain areas. If the area is already zoned to allow a type of business, then there is less grounds for Council to withhold approval. In addition, if the Planning Commission approves an item, Council also requires a super majority (5 out of 7 councilmembers) to overrule Planning Commission. It is important that make sure that we follow these guidelines and respect the zoning of land as people bring potential development to us.
Our next Council meeting will be on April 22, 2021 and will take place after our Committee Meetings.