MOUNT VERNON — Drivers who use residential streets to get from the south side of Mount Vernon to the retail area east on Coshocton Road do not save any appreciable amount of time over those who use the state routes to make the same drive.
Those were the results of a study done by two high school students at the request of Councilman Matt Starr, who said he had been wanting to do the study since the consulting firm of Carpenter Marty provided the origin/destination study results to the city this fall.
The students, Leslie Bell, a senior at Mount Vernon and Meagan Campbell, a sophomore at East Knox, mapped out four routes from the Ohio 586/Ohio 13 intersection for comparison and drove each route out and back five times, carefully observing all speed limit, stop signs and traffic lights.
At most, there was a difference of three-tenths of a minute (18 seconds) between taking the designated truck route and taking Mount Vernon Avenue and cutting across Edgewood Drive, despite the fact that there are more stop lights on the truck route. Going east on High Street was actually slower and the fourth route, taking Gambier Road all the way to where they can pick up Upper Gilchrist and take it to Coshocton Road at the intersection near the Health Department, was both longer and slower.
Council approved an emergency ordinance authorizing the Safety-Service director to advertise for bids and a contract for engineering services to study the New Gambier Road underground reservoir. The reservoir, which holds about two million gallons of water, was built in 1952 and has reached the point where it needs repair, City Engineer Brian Ball told Council.
The reservoir is inspected by camera every five years and Ball said they know there are some cracks in the roof and places were the concrete needs repair. The biggest problem, he said, is that valves are frozen or broken and they need to fix those first, so they can empty half the reservoir at a time to work on it.
Ball does not yet have an estimate for the cost of the entire project, but Ball said they hope to have it done by the end of the year.
Council also authorized seeking bids and contracts for two water line projects they do have estimates for. Both have been planned for several years.
One is the installation of a new water line to improve fire suppression and water service to the high school and the Mount Vernon Nazarene University campus. Doing the project, estimated at about $125,000, now will mean they won’t have to tear up any of the Yellow Jacket Drive extension when it is built.
They also want to do the Venture Drive loop connection project before there is additional development in the area and they still have a clear construction route. The cost is estimated at less than $100,000 and it is in the Tax Increment Financing area, which will help pay for it.
Vacant buildings
Council gave second reading to the proposed vacant buildings registry for commercial buildings. Council members had numerous questions about how it would work.
Planning and Zoning Chair Nancy Vail will meet with Law Director Rob Broeren later this week about incorporating several concerns that were discussed.
Another committee meeting will be held before the next council meeting.
Council also gave second reading to a measure amending the Property Maintenance Code to correct a section on how fines will be administered.
A routine resolution renewing the city membership in the Knox County Regional Planning Commission and appointing the city’s representatives, hit a surprising snag when Councilman Chris Menapace objected to the membership and appointments all being in one piece of legislation. He dismissed Nancy Vail’s attempted explanation as being simply “because it’s the way we’ve always done it” and Vail finally said to just give the resolution a first reading.
In other action, Council:
•Approved the emergency resolution petitioning the county commissioners to annex the 98.543-acre addition to Ariel-Foundation Park. Mayor Richard Mavis said that since the city already owns the property, the commissioners will journalize the entry and will not have to hold any public hearings on the issue.
•Gave final approval to the ordinance increasing the fines for violating a handicapped parking one to $250 as provided under state law. Signs will be posted at handicapped spaces reflecting the increased fines.
•Approved the appointment of former Law Director William Smith as an alternate member of the Board of Zoning Appeals.
•Approved a resolution renewing the city’s adoption of a citizen participation plan for the Ohio Community Development Block Grant programs.
