Whitehall City Council Meeting - January 20, 2026

The Whitehall City Council met at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, January 20, 2026, in Council Chamber at City Hall. Council approved prior meeting minutes, heard a human trafficking prevention proclamation from Mayor Michael Bivens, adopted multiple ordinances, and considered but failed to remove Councilman Gerald Dixon through Resolution 002-2026. The meeting adjourned at 9:23 p.m.

Routine Approvals and Reports

• The January 6, 2026 agenda and regular meeting minutes and the January 13, 2026 agenda and committee meeting minutes were approved unanimously.
• Standing committee reports were received; committees indicated they would meet again the following Tuesday after 6:30 p.m.
• Council voted unanimously to suspend its rules due to a clerical mix-up in the order of officials' reports.
• A liquor license transfer notice from the Ohio Division of Liquor Control was presented: ADN Enterprises LLC, 5815 Carrick Square Drive, Columbus, Ohio, to Afrofusion Grill Columbus LLC, 3866 East Main Street, Whitehall, Ohio.
• Mayor Bivens reported that the Office on Neighborhoods would begin first-round interviews, with 35 qualified applicants, and that the office was funded at 0.3% of the 2026 operating budget. He also congratulated Councilwoman Lori Elmore on the Martin Luther King Jr. Scholarship Awards, noting 14 Whitehall high school students received scholarships and the top two received $1,000 each; combined, they had invested nearly $23,000 of personal money over nine years.

Human Trafficking Prevention Month Proclamation

• Mayor Bivens proclaimed January 2026 as National Human Trafficking Prevention Month in Whitehall. He thanked Councilmember Amy Harcar for requesting the proclamation and noted that a tip and video shared with law enforcement had recently allowed officers to remove an individual from a disparate situation.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Michael Speiser asked the initiators of the recall effort to publicly explain their reasons and said council has a responsibility to protect children.
• Maria Martinez Shears, a former Franklin County prosecutor, expressed support for the Whitehall Police Department and Detective Slosser, saying officers were professional and hardworking. She said the dismissal of a felony complaint was procedural and that an ongoing investigation before a grand jury was common.
• Corey Benson, a Whitehall resident and parent, said describing a board displaying images of young boys with obscene language as art was profoundly disturbing. He asked council to prioritize child safety and publicly thanked the five members who had voted previously to remove Dixon.
• Tara Alston urged council to keep potential victims at the center of the decision and said how this situation is handled affects whether victims come forward. She hoped the next vote would be unanimous.
• Autumn Real, a former resident and clinical mental health professional, criticized council decorum and said it was counterintuitive to bring children near someone they considered a danger.
• Diane Peters criticized the recall effort and community division, saying it was concerning to remove competent elected officials while leaving an accused pedophile on council.
• Brandon Horseman, a lifelong Whitehall resident, said Dixon has a right to an election, should step down if guilty, and deserves an apology if innocent. He also said decisions should not be based on skin color.
• Kay Wilson, a former LeaderSpark executive director who worked with Whitehall youth, said she was appalled by the interruptions and lack of decorum from council members and the audience.

Discussion Items

• Ordinance 133-2025, amending Title Three of the legislative code to prohibit interference with council communications, was amended and adopted. City Attorney Bradley Nicodemus explained its possible relationship to obstruction of official business under state law. Mayor Bivens disputed claims that council had been blocked from email, saying the only limitation was on FOP9.org emails and that related issues were in litigation. Councilmembers Lori Elmore and Devin Brown expressed concerns about administration control of council email. The ordinance passed 4-3, with four votes meaning it did not take effect as an emergency.
• Ordinance 002-2026, approving a contract with the Fraternal Order of Police, Ohio Labor Council, Inc., for full-time police dispatchers for January 1, 2026, through December 31, 2028, was adopted unanimously.
• Ordinance 003-2026, approving the same FOP contract for part-time police dispatchers for the same term, was adopted unanimously.
• Ordinance 004-2026, standardizing accessory dwelling units by amending Section 1116.03 and enacting Section 1116.04, was read by title only as a first reading; no vote was taken.
• Ordinance 005-2026, appropriating $56,000 from unappropriated COBRA extended benefits funds to the COBRA expense account, was adopted unanimously.
• Ordinance 006-2026, appropriating $20,000 from the plumbing permits fund for plumbing permits expenses, was adopted unanimously.
• Ordinance 007-2026, transferring $3,000 from the general fund to the accrued benefit reserve fund, was adopted unanimously.
• Resolution 002-2026, resolving to remove Gerald Dixon from council, was taken up after a motion to suspend the rules passed. During debate, Councilmember Elmore read graphic excerpts from police documents; Councilmember Morrison criticized the police department's public handling of the case and said there was insufficient evidence; Councilmember Brown said Dixon had not denied the evidence taken from his home; Councilmember Harcar objected to rushing the vote and silencing public speakers; Dixon said the process was politically motivated and later apologized for a recent parliamentary point of order. The removal resolution failed on a 3-3 vote because six votes were required.

Key Outcomes

• Minutes of January 6 and January 13, 2026 were approved unanimously.
• Ordinance 133-2025 was adopted 4-3, without emergency status.
• Ordinances 002-2026, 003-2026, 005-2026, 006-2026, and 007-2026 were adopted unanimously.
• Resolution 002-2026 failed by a vote of 3-3, with Councilman Dixon not voting, so Gerald Dixon remained on council.
• The city attorney clarified that failed removal legislation is not subject to a mayoral veto, while adopted ordinances are subject to veto.
• Council scheduled discussion of council rules for the next week.