Toledo City Council Agenda Review – March 24, 2026
Toledo City Council Agenda Review – March 24, 2026
The Toledo City Council held an Agenda Review meeting on March 24, 2026, at 2:00 PM in the Council Chambers to prepare for the March 31, 2026, full council meeting. The review covered multiple ordinances and resolutions, including a major $7.75 million federal lead hazard reduction grant, a new refuse and recycling contract, infrastructure projects, and new legislative proposals. All council members were present except one (12 present).
Discussion Items
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Lead Hazard Reduction Grant (O-112-26) – Department of Housing and Community Development Chief Rosalyn Clemens and grant manager Jerry Kolkowski presented a $7,750,000 grant from HUD for lead abatement in pre-1978 housing. The four-year program targets households at or below 80% AMI, prioritizes units with children under six with elevated lead levels, and funds up to $30,000 for lead hazard reduction and $15,000 for healthy homes repairs. The budget breakdown includes 22% for personnel, 1.5% for travel/training, 0.8% for supplies, 38% for property owner grants, and 25.9% for direct contractor payments. A portion supports the Lead Resource Center for outreach, education, and contractor training. Council members questioned overhead costs, staffing funded by the grant vs. general fund, enforcement of income restrictions, marketing, and contractor capacity. The item was recommended for a committee hearing on March 27, 2026, and the department requested SCP (send to council with positive recommendation).
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Refuse and Recycling Contract with Priority Waste (O-113-26) – Chief of Operations Megan Ropeson and Public Service Director Joe Fausnaugh presented a five-year agreement (with a five-year renewal option) with Priority Waste for curbside collection services, estimated at $13.56 million annually. The contract includes enhanced technology (real-time truck monitoring, dedicated customer service) and will replace the current Republic Services contract ending August 31, 2026. A committee hearing was scheduled for March 25, 2026, at 4:00 PM. Council members asked about key performance indicators and contract details. Recommended for first read and SCP.
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Rodent Abatement and Demolition (O-114-26) – Commissioner of Urban Beautification Sara Stacy requested $40,000 annually for rodent abatement services at properties declared public nuisances, under an existing MOU with the Toledo-Lucas County Health Department. The cost is $85 per property. Council President Williams humorously questioned rodent release locations, and Council member Gadus asked about other pests (bed bugs, cockroaches). The item was recommended for SCP, with a referral to the health department for additional information.
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Clean Toledo Center (O-115-26) – Authorization of $65,000 for a recycling drop-off center at 3900 Creekside Avenue, set to open spring 2026. The center will accept scrap metal, yard waste, food waste, electronics, and donation items. Revenue from scrap metal will go to the general fund. Hours: Tuesday–Saturday, 8:30 AM–4:30 PM. Recommended for SCP.
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Heatherdowns Pump Station Repair (O-116-26) – DPU Commissioner Andy McClure requested $100,000 for repair of pump three at the Heatherdowns pump station. Vibration monitors indicated needed refurbishment; three contracts will cover removal/installation, pump repair, and motor repair. The station has redundancy. Recommended for SCP.
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Sewer Tunnel Preliminary Design (O-117-26) – Authorization to accept an Ohio EPA loan of up to $317,210 for the preliminary design of the secondary tunnel replacement at the Bay View Water Reclamation Facility (Improvement 44D). The project uses a construction manager at risk delivery method; construction is estimated at $12–14 million. Recommended for SCP.
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Cybersecurity Enhancements (O-118-26) – CIO Ann Bennett and project manager Josh Rasso presented a $154,900 allocation from 2025 capital funds for cybersecurity resilience and recovery projects amid current threats to municipalities and the water/wastewater sector. Funds will leverage existing vendor contracts. Council member Sarantou confirmed the funds were not spent last year due to hope that they wouldn't be needed. Recommended for SCP.
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Bridge Projects (O-119-26 and O-120-26) – Deputy Director Jeremy Mikolajczyk presented two ODOT cooperative agreements: $2,000,000 (5% city match) for Kuhlman Drive bridge deck replacement over Norfolk Southern Railway, and $1,735,661 (5% city match) for removal of the Central Avenue bridge over Buckeye Street. The Central bridge removal includes replacing access ramps with an intersection and addressing illegal dumping. Council President Williams requested engagement with the nearby prison and neighborhood. Recommended for SCP.
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Zoning and Planning Items – Four items were reviewed: a zone change at 3360 & 3356 Monroe Street; a special use permit for used auto sales at 631 S. Reynolds Road; a special use permit for community recreation-active at 2858 & 2860 Lagrange Street; and an amendment to a special use permit for a school at 6004 Hill Avenue. All were recommended for placement on the full council agenda.
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Biometric Data Collection Ordinance (TMP-12343 / O-109-26) – Council member Gadus introduced an ordinance to amend the Toledo Municipal Code by enacting Chapter 557, “Biometric Data Collection”. Council member Sarantou asked about applicability to security cameras. Gadus explained that the ordinance targets businesses that collect biometric data (retina scans, fingerprints, facial recognition processed through software) and would require posting a sign; standard video cameras not using biometric analysis software are exempt. The Chamber of Commerce was consulted. The item was placed on the agenda.
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Budget Reduction Resolution (TMP-12360 / R-110-26) – A resolution urging the Mayor's office and City Council to reduce the 2027 and 2028 budgets by $10 million per year was introduced by all council members. No discussion occurred beyond noting its placement.
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National League of Cities Membership Dues (TMP-12341 / O-111-26) – Authorization of $17,366 for 2026 membership dues, sponsored by Council President Williams. Placed on the agenda.
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Appointment – Cody Brown was appointed to the Troy Township JEDD Board.
Key Outcomes
- All agenda items received recommendations for placement on the March 31, 2026, full council meeting. Most were recommended for SCP (send to council with positive recommendation) or first read.
- The Lead Hazard Reduction Grant and the Priority Waste contract were scheduled for additional committee hearings on March 27 and March 25, respectively, for further discussion.
- A referral was made for the rodent abatement item to obtain clarification from the health department about pest types and release locations.
- The Central Avenue bridge removal item will involve outreach to the prison and neighborhood, as requested by Council President Williams.
- Council member Sarantou reminded members of the Finance Committee hearing at 4:00 PM on March 24 to discuss delinquent water/sewer bill collection, February financials, and the 2026 budget proposal.
Meeting Transcript
I call to order the agenda review of March twenty-fourth, twenty twenty six. Clerk, please call the role. Hobbs here. Jones. Martinez. Present. McPherson. Meldon. Here. Morris. Here. Soranto? Here. Williams. Driscoll? Here. Gaddis. Quorum presence. Good afternoon, members of council. I'm Rosalind Clemens, the Chief of Housing and Neighborhood Sustainability. I'm joined this afternoon by Jerry Kolkowski, our led grant program manager. The ordinance before you is to accept uh authorizing acceptance deposit appropriation and expenditure of seven million seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars for the lead hazard reduction grant program from the U.S. Department of Housing and the Office of Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes. The lead grant is the department's uh only tool that we have for uh uh remediating and abating lead in our housing here in the city. The department applied for and competitively competed and was successful in obtaining this award. The grant is for a four-year period beginning uh March 2nd of this year. The grant provides opportunities for properties that were built prior to 1978. Residential properties that are one to four units are eligible for the program. Units must be occupied by households with incomes at or below eighty percent of the area median. Priority for the work is given to health department units where orders have been issued by the health departments where a child has tested positive for elit elevated lead levels. The prioritization of children under six is because uh a child under six is most susceptible to lead poisoning. Properties can receive uh $30,000 for lead hazard reduction and $15,000 for healthy homes or energy efficient repairs. The remaining funds will support education outreach and staffing for the program. Uh the ordinance has a Schedule A, which is the budget that we have negotiated with HUD for this grant, showing the breakdown of how we intend to use the funds. Um point seven million or twenty-two percent of the grant is used for personnel and fringe, 119,000, 494 or 1.5 percent for uh staff travel training and licensing, equipment, supplies, and other materials account for .8 percent or 59,162. Uh and uh for property owner grants, 3,07,273 and 65 cents, or approximately 38 percent of the grant. Direct contractors to let trained contractors will be 2,04,849, or 25.9 percent of the grant, and the rest of the breakdown is on your is on your schedule there. I will stop now and take questions at this time. And we are requesting SCP. Um before I take questions, I I I've asked staff to put together for the second slide. It shows you um for the previous grant that we got, how many units we did, uh how those units were dispersed throughout the city. Um what the slides show is that uh for our highest risk census tracts, uh council districts three and four, we did the most units, uh most of the units being in in Council District 3, where there were 79 um units, council council district four, 39 units. The breakdown over the city for owner-occupied units were 40 units or approximately 25 percent of the units we did for rental units, 120 percent or 75 percent of the units we did, and those units that we did as a direct result of uh health department orders accounted to uh about 28 percent of the units. The um application process would be done uh digitally through our neighbors software portal. Applic we will uh once we get approval, we will market the grant. People can apply through the neighborly, the applications are assessed by staff, the properties are then inspected by our staff, the specs are written, all work has to be completed by a licensed led contractor, and of course the completed work must pass our risk assessment for approval. So this is how the the grant is is uh supposed to flow. And we are requesting SCP on this. Councilwoman got us. Thank you.
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