Gahanna Committee of the Whole Meeting Summary - February 11, 2026
Gahanna City Council Committee of the Whole – February 11, 2026
The Gahanna City Council Committee of the Whole met at 7:06 p.m. in Council Chambers at Gahanna City Hall and adjourned at 8:41 p.m. Vice President Jamille Jones chaired the meeting, and all Councilmembers were present. The agenda was published on Friday, February 6, 2026. Vice President Jones announced that ORD-0002-2026 (Tax Incentive Review Council recommendations) had been removed from the agenda for later discussion. Note: The agenda and minutes identify the meeting date as Monday, February 9, 2026, while the timestamp provided for this summary identifies the meeting date as February 11, 2026.
Consent Calendar and Uncontested Items
- Ohio Division of Liquor Control notice 2026-0027 for transfer of liquor permit TRFO 10011069-1 from Pub in Gahanna LLC to Gahanna's Pub, The Pub in Gahanna, 207 W Johnstown Road: Clerk VanMeter reported no objections from the Gahanna Division of Police; Council raised no objections, and the Clerk was directed to notify the Division of Liquor Control that the City did not request a hearing.
- MT-0006-2026, seasonal employment of Caris Lantz as Council Office Intern through the MORPC Summer Internship Program at $15.99 per hour: supported by Clerk VanMeter and President Weaver; expected to start in June; scheduled for adoption on the February 16, 2026 Consent Agenda.
- ORD-0005-2026, supplemental appropriations for Central Park TIF Fund, General Fund, and Cul-de-sac Maintenance Fund: scheduled for adoption on the February 16, 2026 Consent Agenda.
Discussion Items
ORD-0007-2026 – Acceptance of approximately 7.6-acre annexation from Jefferson Township (4736 and 4722 Johnstown Road; parcel IDs 170-000068 and 170-000069)
- Clerk VanMeter outlined the timeline: City Council authorized a pre-annexation agreement with Jimmie and Darlene Toney and Trivium Development LLC on May 5, 2025; an Expedited Type II annexation petition was filed with Franklin County on October 23, 2025; Council adopted RES-0052-2025 on November 3, 2025 identifying municipal services; the Franklin County Board of Commissioners approved the petition on December 2, 2025; and the Clerk received the certified copy on December 12, 2025, starting the 60-day consideration period.
- The question before Council was only whether to accept the annexation. Developer representative Tim Spencer confirmed that annexation would be followed by a rezoning application and a final development plan through normal City review processes, and that no formal zoning or development applications had been filed.
- Mr. Spencer stated the developer's intent is to explore a mixed-use development. He identified site challenges including a pond on the rear of the property with drainage implications, traffic considerations, and surrounding infrastructure. He said nearby property owners had been consulted informally, and if annexation were not approved the petitioners would pursue development options under Jefferson Township zoning and jurisdiction. He also noted the preference for City sewer service and two alternative water options across the street.
- Councilmember Schnetzer asked when tax increment financing or other incentives could be discussed. Economic Development Director Jeff Gottke described a three-step sequence: acceptance of annexation, zoning/rezoning, then development plan and development agreement; incentive discussions would be finalized at the development agreement stage.
- Mayor Laurie Jadwin asked about sequencing and incentives; Mr. Spencer said incentive tools and technical requirements would be evaluated with City staff after annexation. City Attorney Priya Tamilarasan said Council's discretion on annexation is broader than for rezoning because no statutory factors limit Council in the City code.
- Councilmember Nancy McGregor asked about protecting or controlling the riparian corridor and floodplain. Mr. Spencer said easements, open space, or other protective measures had been discussed informally, received a negative initial response, and required further evaluation.
- Outcome: Council directed the ordinance to the Regular Agenda with First Reading on February 16, 2026 and consideration of adoption on March 2, 2026.
Gahanna Civic Center (825 Tech Center Drive) – Move-In and Occupancy Update
- Senior Director of Operations Kevin Schultz presented a move-in update rather than a construction update. Operations are expected to begin in approximately 60 to 75 days, pending completion of life safety systems, public safety technology, City IT infrastructure, secure access controls, and a Certificate of Occupancy from the Building Department.
- The move plan runs about four to five weeks: week one moves bulk items and permanent records; week two moves staff workspaces and furniture; week three includes the heaviest move activity, with City Hall closed to the public on Monday and Tuesday of that week, phone service from the new facility beginning Wednesday, and first public visitors expected Thursday. Police services will operate with limited overlap between 460 Rocky Fork Boulevard and 825 Tech Center Drive to maintain critical services. Field services move last, and senior programming begins after the main move phases.
- Proposed schedule adjustments: April 6, 2026 would be the last City Council meeting in the current facility; April 8, 2026 would be the last Planning Commission meeting there; no Council meetings are proposed for April 13 or April 20, 2026; the last public meeting in the current facility is expected to be a Parks Board meeting on April 15, 2026; a tentative Open House is set for April 25, 2026; and the first public meetings at 825 Tech Center Drive are proposed for April 27, 2026, beginning with Committee of the Whole followed by Regular Council.
- Councilmember Bowers asked about streaming and audiovisual technology. Mr. Schultz said streaming servers and related equipment will be installed after IT infrastructure spaces are complete; the new system will be similar to the current platform with upgraded capacity. The conference room adjoining Council Chambers will have videoconferencing, microphones, speakers, and displays but will not stream.
- A financial recap is expected around May 2026 after closeout; the project remains within budget and within contingencies and allowances. Council, boards, and commissions will receive safety orientations, and a site visit for Council is anticipated later in February.
ORD-0005-2026 – Supplemental Appropriations
- Finance Director Joann Bury presented the ordinance. The first supplemental appropriation supports the Crescent development by funding special assessment bond principal and interest due in September 2026; the first reimbursement request was verified for eligible expenses exceeding $2 million, and payment to the developer will be processed. A General Fund appropriation addresses a fleet software adjustment omitted during final appropriations. Previously unexpended Cul-de-sac Maintenance Fund money will be applied to cul-de-sac work in the current year street program.
- Outcome: First Reading had already occurred; Council agreed to place the ordinance on the February 16, 2026 Consent Agenda for adoption.
ORD-0006-2026 – Amendment to Codified Ordinance Section 133.02 (Purchasing Procedures)
- Director Bury explained the City was notified in 2022 by the Auditor of State that its procurement policy did not comply with federal uniform guidance for receiving federal funds. The proposed policy integrates federal procurement thresholds with Ohio Revised Code requirements, applying lower state thresholds where applicable.
- Key proposed thresholds and rules: petty cash increases from $50 to $100; the Micro-Purchase threshold remains at $10,000 rather than the federal $15,000; the Small Purchase threshold remains at $250,000 rather than the federal $350,000; Micro-Purchases rely on vendor variety; Small Purchases require at least two vendor quotes attached to requisitions; statutory sealed bid requirements increased from $50,000 to $75,000 in 2024, with 3% annual increases; competitive proposals are used for professional services above Small Purchase amounts; limited exceptions allow non-competitive procurement.
- The ordinance also incorporates a pre-qualification process for specialized professional services such as floodplain management, traffic signal coordination, and utility operations. Director Bury and Senior Director Schultz explained that pre-qualification does not award contracts, is valid for three years with annual certification, and is followed by a competitive proposal step for each project. Council has no formal role in establishing the pre-qualification list, but Council authorizes the Mayor to execute contracts when thresholds require it.
- Councilmembers and the Mayor discussed whether the $250,000 legislative approval threshold is appropriate. Councilmember Bowers stated the threshold appeared to be an outlier compared with peer communities and cited Bexley's Board of Control review and Upper Arlington's quarterly reporting to Council. Councilmember Renner argued procurement thresholds affect stewardship, trust, community benefit, economic development, and vendor diversity. Mayor Jadwin noted the threshold had been in place for about three and a half years with no operational issues and positive audits, and suggested possible reporting mechanisms aligned with the City's strategic plan, Our Gahanna.
- Senior Director Schultz asked Council to clarify whether the concern was the dollar threshold or the type of project, and he described the need to define a reporting mechanism. He also urged separate consideration of the retainage section: the Ohio Revised Code recently reduced allowable retainage from 8% to 4%, while City code allows a 10% staggered retainage, which staff considers a critical safeguard. Two large construction contracts were recently executed with only 4% retainage because of the current code deficiency.
- Council agreed to return the ordinance to Committee for further discussion. Questions and research requests from Councilmembers were due to administration by the end of the week, with the next Committee discussion scheduled for February 23, 2026.
Key Outcomes
- ORD-0007-2026: accepted for Regular Agenda; First Reading February 16, 2026; adoption consideration March 2, 2026.
- Liquor permit notice 2026-0027: no hearing requested; City will notify the Ohio Division of Liquor Control.
- MT-0006-2026: scheduled for Consent Agenda February 16, 2026.
- ORD-0005-2026: scheduled for Consent Agenda adoption February 16, 2026.
- ORD-0002-2026: held for further discussion on February 23, 2026; second reading/adoption postponed to date certain March 2, 2026.
- ORD-0006-2026: held in Committee for further discussion on February 23, 2026; second reading/adoption postponed to date certain March 2, 2026; Councilmember questions due by end of week.
Meeting Transcript
Good evening, everyone. It's Monday February 9th, and uh we are going to go ahead and get our committee of the whole started. Thank you for everyone's patience as we're a little tardy and getting started this evening. We do have one adjustment, one revision to our agenda. We'll be removing ordinance 002026. Um that will come back for where further discussion, but wanted to let everyone know we are removing that from the agenda for this evening. So our first item up for discussion is 007 2026, our annexation. Um I believe that we're gonna start with Clerk Van Meter um for some notes in his memo. Okay. Thank you, Madam Chair. Um, just to be brief, I did attach a memo for council to review to this action item. This is an ordinance to accept the annexation of approximately 7.6 acres from Jefferson Township into the city of Gehana for parcel IDs located at 4736 and 4722 Johnstown Road. As you recall, back in May of 2025, City Council had authorized a pre-annexation agreement with Jimmy Tony, Darlene Tony, and Trivium Development LLC. Subsequent to that, the petitioners um Jimmy and Darlene Tony had filed an expedited type two annexation with Franklin County, um, provided the notice that was required by law, and on November 3rd, this city council had passed a resolution of services pursuant to a higher revised code identifying the municipal services to be be provided or available to the territory proposed for annexation. Um February 2nd, the Board of County Commissioners had approved through their review of the petition and had uh submitted that to the city. I received that on December 12th, 2025, and from that point that initiated a 60-day wait period uh before I uh provided the ordinance to council for consideration. Uh so tonight we do have the uh uh counsel for the petitionals here, Monica Fuster, as well as uh um Tim Spencer from the developer available for any questions you have. Um, but again, tonight the question that is before you um is whether to accept the annexation great, thank you, Clark Van Meter, for um your thorough laying out of where we are and kind of what happens next. Uh I will turn it over to uh do our guests have anything that you want to start out with chairing or presenting or just questions? All right, so council, do we have questions or discussion? Sure. Or oh yes, uh yes, Mr. Beaver. Um so my understanding from the memo, and correct me if I'm wrong, is that should the annexation be accepted into the city still to come would be the rezoning application and like a final development plan or a development. I see some heads nodding. So evening, sir. Thank you. No, okay. Uh that is correct. Um the um the annexation just uh precedes um any rezoning application, and we need to go through your normal uh procedure and protocol and your correct final development plan uh would need to be approved as well. So really the question is should these parcels be annexed into the city and we can figure out what happens to it correctly. Well loosely the clerk uh went through some of our timeline uh prior. Um I've been in front of this body before, and with the pre pre-annexation agreement, we have a um the intent or the desire to explore uh a mixed-use development uh on the project. Um this group may or may not be aware in its totality that we have reached out to neighbors. Um we have been given uh some informal uh feedback. Uh this the site, if you're not familiar with it with its location. Um the acreage is challenged. The fact that uh a number of years ago, 20, 30 years ago, when it was in its heyday as a landscaping company, um the rear of the property uh has a pond for all intents and purposes that was built. Um that um may or may not exasperate flooding and drainage issues in the area. It challenges uh development, of course. Umce that pond was created. Obviously, there's a roundabout and traffic traffic concerns because in tight. And uh so we've been addressing all those items uh good, bad, or indifferent. The annexation process takes an exorbitant amount of time. We've not uh had any more conversations with the residents uh nor with staff on a formal or informal uh basis. Our goal would be to prove uh pursue a mixed-use uh uh rezoning with Keppard Fisher and uh uh proceed as we get we get through this hurdle. Uh we've had some start and stops with just the again it's the it's the laws of the land that we have to follow. So now we're gearing up uh uh pending acceptance into the city. We'll we'll file a rezoning and obviously a final development plan. So thank you very much for that.
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