Village council to consider contracting with SafeBuilt LLC

REPUBLIC—The Village of Republic's council members met Monday, during which Bob Kurtz, chief building official of SafeBuilt, discussed the possibility of the village adopting SafeBuilt's program—the same company contracted by the Seneca County Building Department in 2023. In June 2023, an agreement was signed between the Seneca County Commissioners and SafeBuilt LLC, a community development services firm offering building inspections, plan reviews, private providers, and other professional services. Kurtz explained that to adopt the program in Republic, they would have to become certified independently, as only the unincorporated areas fall under the Seneca County Building Department's certification. He continued by sharing that the process of adopting the program is very simple, stating, "It only takes two ordinances being written to become certified and at no cost to the village." Kurtz said, "All of the inspectors and building officials are certified through the state, we have inspectors that would come and conduct the inspections." According to Kurtz, the only item not included in the program is plumbing, as Seneca County has contracted the Erie County Health Department for sewer services. Tanya Hemmer, council member, asked what would be the difference between this new process and what the village does now by going through the state? Kurtz said the biggest reason would be convenience. "If you go through the state, it's going to take time," he said. "From various architects I've worked with, it can take the state up to 60 days to grant approval to start construction. Part of our contract with the county is that we will get you that same response, but within 10 days." Kurtz said there are some exceptions as to what they have power over, as laid out in Chapter 1 of the Ohio Build Code. "One of these items is above-ground LP (liquid propane) storage tanks," he said. The only time we may have some authority over those is if they are running electric, and they need an inspection before the utility company will give them power." On another matter, village resident Diane Anderson asked Mayor Don Holmer whether or not there had been an update regarding an ordinance to prevent the installation of future LP tanks similar to the one being built at Mickey Mart, that's been the topic of discussion for the last few weeks. According to Holmer, he said the Village Solicitor Gina Grandillo is "looking into it." Anderson had also asked if they had looked into the Home Rule, saying, "According to the Home Rule, they really are not allowed to put this here, on a federal level." Village Solicitor Gina Grandillo asked Anderson for a legal translation and whether or not it was implemented in Ohio, to which Anderson responded, "Yes, it was implemented in 1912. If you look it up, it's pretty self-explanatory." Grandillo shared an update regarding ODOT and the above-ground LP tank during the meeting. "I initially requested an advisory opinion from Zach Wertz, who referred me to Chris Waterford," she said. "They were already aware of everything based on citizen comments, and offered an advisory opinion should the council elect to get it." Holmer said the village had met with Cole's Energy on Monday to discuss how deliveries would take place. He shared that, as it stands, drivers would pull in off of SR 18 West, pull behind the gas station and up to the tank, and load up/unload at the LP tank. Additionally, he gave an update regarding the village's safety plan, saying that it would become a county issue. "It's no different than if it were a hazmat or train derailment situation, and we would utilize the County's Hazard Mitigation Plan," said Mayor Holmer. Council member Tanya Hemmer added, "Anything of that magnitude, the first thing any of us would do is call the county EMA." Holmer also noted that while one of the village's sirens is having issues, they plan on repairing it shortly and that "it still would sound clear if it were to become active." On another matter, Crystal Hoepf, village administrator, said the village is still waiting on the asbestos assessment reports. Hoepf also discussed contracts to be signed by the end of August on the three-phase project to build a new water tower, with the first phase to implement new water lines. The second is to implement the new tower and the final phase would be the demolition of the old tower. In addition, Hoepf said there is a need for new aerators for the sewer system's lagoons.She offered two solutions, one would be to only purchase one new aerator and two repair kits for $13,700, or to buy two new units and one repair kit for $31,600. Following some discussion within the council, member Kevin Thompson moved to go the more expensive route, stating that it would be more beneficial in the long run. The motion was approved.