The City of Bridgeport and the Harrison County Board of Education have been working in good faith to carry out an agreement put in place at time of the Johnson Elementary School construction when the city waived B&O taxes for use of the school gymnasium. Athletics, such as Parks and Recreation’s Fast Break Basketball League and Bridgeport Jerry West has been held at JES, worked in only after what the school has scheduled.

 

It has worked fine for the past year-plus, but Monday night Bridgeport City Council voted unanimously to act upon an agreement between the city and the Board of Education concerning funding and use of the school gym. That agreement, said Mayor Andy Lang, is for a five-year term.

 

“It follows through with a memorandum of understanding made during construction to make the gym larger and a better facility for the kids at school, as well as for the use of our citizens through Parks and Recreation,” Lang said. “It starts this year, even though the department of Parks and Recreation and the school board established a schedule and have been using it according to the way it was laid out. So, this agreement is retroactive.”

 

Council also unanimously approved the first reading of an ordinance amending the city code relating to nuisance property and spelling out consequences for detrimental activity held at rental properties.

 

Councilor Bob Greer said he believes it is necessary to make public a good definition of what a nuisance property is and the actions that would take place if the ordinance is violated.

 

“If the nuisance is the making and dealing of drugs in our residential neighborhoods – and we know we want that at the top – we don’t want landlords to be afraid the police will bust them for not doing something that police have been unable to do for various different circumstances," Greer said. 

 

Discussions at several Council work sessions have led up to the ordinance amendment.

 

“This ordinance will change the way certain landlords have to do business,” Greer said. “Residential leases don’t necessarily contain language reflected in this ordinance and existing leases to function. People have expectations of privacy in their homes, even when leasing, and for us to hold landlords financially and otherwise responsible for their tenants, we need to make sure we do this right and hold a public hearing, as well as a second reading, in the future, and hope with the broader circulation of verbiage and continued coverage by our news media, we will get additional feedback. We need to write a law that (Bridgeport Police John Walker) can apply.”

 

The language will be posted on the city’s Web site and sent to landlords after a list is accumulated. If you are a landlord and would like a copy, please email City Clerk Donna Krivosky at donna@bridgeportwv.com.

 

The second reading of the ordinance will take place Monday, Oct. 27.

 

The other matter passed unanimously by City Council was the contract with Specialty Group, Inc. for sealing the stamped concrete brickwork on Main Street. The contract is for $29,920.50 with a 10 percent contingency.

 

Greer reminded Council that the brickwork along Main Street was completed with grant money.

 

“We don’t get a lot of grants, but this one for beautification was a good one and we need to continue to maintain it,” he said.

 

Councilor Don Burton said he believes the maintenance is a little overdo and that it has been three to four years since it was last sealed.

Overall, Lang said he thinks the city has done a good job with the upkeep and that the red brickwork makes the Main Street Corridor more attractive to residents and visitors.

 

Council voted to move the Nov. 11 Council meeting to Nov. 12 in honor of Veteran’s Day and to cancel the Dec. 23 meeting due to the Christmas holiday.

 

Mike Fresa addressed Council during the public comment portion of the meeting. In addition to thanking Council for the lifting of the drains, he had a few suggestions for future consideration.

 

He proposed that the city invest in a leaf vacuum which would eliminate the bagging and ultimate disposing of them in landfills. Discarded leaves could be recycled into mulch for use in city flowerbeds or other local uses.

 

Fresa also brought attention to the larger storage buildings that are popping up on residential properties. He believes there should be a limit on their size, so as not to be obtrusive.

 

The resident also suggested the building of a city gazebo sometime in the future.

 

“Bridgeport continues to have growth, but we also like to keep the hometown feel,” he said. “I’ve visited 23 communities (in other states) in comparable size to our city and their gazebos really draw a lot of people in on weekend.”

 

The gazebo would be an ideal place to host music and other entertainment, Fresa said. 

 

Fresa’s last comment was about Ray Blake. He drew attention to the fact that back in the early 1960s, Blake took a huge gamble, purchasing a farm and creating a large area of residential development. He’s been instrumental, Fresa said, in some of the city’s earliest growth.

 

City Manager Randy Wetmore spoke about the NLC Service Line Warranty Program. He has been in touch with a representative and language is in progress for the letter. NLC will send letters out on behalf of the city. Customers pay a small fee per month to purchase protection in case there is damage to water/sewer lines that are not on city property.

 

Councilor John Wilson closed the meeting with some comments. He drew attention to the fact that last week was Media Week and he thanked members of the media for their continued coverage of city happenings.

 

Wilson also urged those walking after dark to events and for leisure to carry a flashlight. Walking or running at nighttime, especially in dark clothes, is very dangerous, Wilson said.

 

Monday’s meeting started with an invocation by Father Chris Turner of All Saints Catholic Church, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance and two proclamations, both read and presented by Mayor Lang. One was read and presented to Jackie Ritter of Hope Inc. Task Force on Domestic Violence recognizing Domestic Violence Awareness Month and the other was read and presented to Peggy Johnson, UHC navigator for breast and cervical health and an 18-year breast cancer survivor, recognizing Breast Cancer Awareness Month.