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Record of Proceedings

Whitehall City Council Regular Meeting - March 3, 2026

City Council — Tuesday, March 3, 2026
BodyWhitehall, Ohio
SessionCity Council
DateTuesday, March 3, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
Meeting Thumbnail
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Transcript — Verbatim

Speaker numbers apply only to this recording.

Unassigned speaker

0:00

That's what I'm saying.

Unassigned speaker

0:12

Good

Speaker 1

0:12

evening, everyone, and welcome to the White House City Council agenda meeting of Tuesday, March 3rd, 2026.

0:18

We will now go over the agenda for this evening's meeting, which will commence at 7 p.m.

0:23

We'll start with a moment of silence, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance, followed by our roll call.

0:29

Then we're going to have our approval of the minutes, which included February 16, 2026 special meeting minutes, the February 27, 2026 agenda and regular meeting minutes, as well as the February 24th, 2026 committees, committee meeting minutes.

0:43

I will need somebody to make a motion and somebody to second.

Speaker 2

0:46

Mr.

0:46

Potter, I'm sorry for the interruption.

0:48

I just realized there's no microphone down here for Mr.

0:50

Asco.

Speaker 3

0:51

It's broken, so you guys will have to speak into that.

0:54

The

Speaker 2

0:54

one that's right in front of you.

0:55

Okay.

0:56

All right.

0:56

Sorry, my apologies.

0:57

No, no worries.

0:58

I just realized.

Unassigned speaker

1:00

So

Speaker 1

1:00

getting back, who would like to make a motion?

Speaker 2

1:02

I'll make a motion.

1:03

Thank you, Ms.

1:03

Harkar.

Unassigned speaker

1:05

Oh,

Speaker 1

1:05

hackins.

1:06

Okay.

1:07

Mr.

1:07

Atkins, that's fine.

1:09

Thank you.

1:12

Then we'll be have the presentation of the 2025 employees of the year.

1:16

Then we'll move on to the first presentation by Tom Rasciuto.

1:21

Am I pronouncing that correctly?

Speaker 4

1:23

I believe so.

Speaker 1

1:24

Okay.

1:25

Okay.

1:35

We'll then go into our standing committee reports.

1:38

And after that, we'll go into our officials' reports.

1:41

And since our last meeting, there have been no reports filed in the council chamber's offices.

1:47

Under communications, petitions and claims, there have been no communications, petitions, and claims that have been filed in the council office since our last meeting.

Unassigned speaker

1:54

We'll

Speaker 1

1:54

then have our first poll public of the evening, which will invite anybody to come forward.

1:58

You'll have three minutes to just state your name.

2:17

Making appropriation for current general fund 101 expenses for the Department of Neighborhoods and Declaration of an Emergency.

2:27

Second by Mr.

2:28

Dixon.

2:30

They're then going to have a second reading on resolution 5, 2026.

2:34

Approving revisions to the investment policy of the City of Whitehall and declaring an emergency.

2:38

This will be introduced by Mr.

2:40

Brown and second by Mr.

2:41

Adkins.

2:43

Under first reading, we have ordinance 11, 2026, which will be read by title only.

2:48

Authorizing adoption of the May 2026 replacement pages to the codified orders of the City of Whitehall and declaring an emergency.000.50,009 and declaring an emergency.

3:31

From unappropriate monies in the general fund 101 to the debt service fund 401.

3:36

This will be introduced by Ms.

3:37

Elmer and seconded by Mr.

3:39

Brown.

Unassigned speaker

3:41

Or

Speaker 1

3:41

is 14, 2026, approving and making a submit appropriation in the amount of $4,090 from unappropriate monies in the police department grant fund 212 to the 212.000.5010 Ohio Traffic Ohio Traffic Safety Grant OTSO Expense Account.

3:59

This will be introduced by Miss Elmore, seconded by Mr.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Procedural██████████████████████████████████████████42%
Community Engagement████████████████16%
Fiscal Sustainability████████████12%
Public Engagement███████7%
Personnel Matters█████5%
Government Structure█████5%
Food Security████4%
Budget Equity Analysis██2%
Zoning And Land Use██2%
Summary of Proceedings

Whitehall City Council Regular Meeting - March 3, 2026

The Whitehall City Council convened for its regular meeting on Tuesday, March 3, 2026, at 7:00 p.m. in the Council Chamber. The agenda featured the recognition of the 2025 Employees of the Year, a financial presentation by the city's municipal advisors, the formal introduction of the Department of Neighborhoods, a crucial vote on whether to defund the department, and a line-by-line adoption of the 2026-2027 Rules of Procedure.

Special Presentations

  • 2025 Employees of the Year: The council adopted resolutions recognizing Dustin Irvin (Labor/Service), Justin Mooney (Firefighter/Paramedic), Jason Kubinski (Police Officer), and Julie Ogg (Administrative/Support). Each received a one-time payment of $350. Julie Ogg, the Clerk of Council, was recognized during the meeting for her 22 years of service.
  • Baker Tilly Municipal Advisors (Debt Presentation): Senior Manager Tom Ricchiuto provided a detailed analysis of the city's finances. Whitehall holds approximately $32 million in outstanding debt. The city holds an 'A' (stable) credit rating from S&P Global. The city has a general fund balance at 21.2% of annual revenues and averaged a 10% surplus over the last three years. Auditor Alexander emphasized the city's strong fiscal health, noting the general fund ended 2025 with an actual balance of $8.4 million.

Discussion Items

  • Department of Neighborhoods: Incoming Director Gerald Wright presented his 90-day plan for the department, which he will officially assume on March 16. He outlined a vision focused on resident listening sessions, multilingual communication, and acting as a central hub to bridge gaps between city departments and residents. Councilmembers pressed Wright on metrics, redundancy, and budget. Councilmembers Harcar and Brown argued strongly against defunding the department, stating it is financially responsible and necessary to address Whitehall's leading poverty and infant mortality rates. Councilmembers Morrison, McCann, and Dixon voted in favor of defunding. Mayor Bivens gave a strong defense of his administration's work and the department's necessity, calling for council to reject the defunding ordinance.
  • Adoption of 2026-2027 Rules of Procedure: Council spent a significant portion of the evening (from approximately 9:30 PM to 10:37 PM) conducting a line-by-line review and vote on 44 items of the proposed code of conduct for council meetings. Key amendments adopted included:
    • Striking specific street addresses from public sign-in sheets (changing to "name and city" throughout the document).
    • Setting public comment time to a maximum of 3 minutes.
    • Amending the order of reports to include the Director of the Department of Neighborhoods.
    • Establishing rules for signs in the chamber (allowed, no larger than 2x1.5 feet, must be held in a lap or stood in the back/sides of the room).
    • Setting Poll Council speaking time to 3 minutes with additional time possible at the president's discretion to account for interruptions.
    • Requiring cell phones to be silenced on the dais.
    • A motion to entirely strike the section on Robert's Rules of Order (Item 44) failed, though it was passed on subsequent sub-votes.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Multiple residents spoke in support of the Department of Neighborhoods and against Ordinance 008-2026, which sought to defund it.
  • Diane Peters appealed directly to Councilmembers Atkins, Morrison, McCann, and Dixon, arguing that the current system has failed to lower Whitehall's high poverty rate.
  • Brian Winston described the department as an "investment in community stability" and a necessary bridge between problems and solutions.
  • Annie Johnson shared a personal story of overcoming 16 months of homelessness and credited Mayor Bivens with connecting her to resources.
  • Marie Long praised the Mayor's efforts during the oil spill and his work on food insecurity, admonishing council members who withheld applause for the department during the State of the City address.

Officials' Reports

  • Mayor Bivens highlighted the successful State of the City event and a mock trial held at City Hall, and strongly defended his administration and the Department of Neighborhoods.
  • City Attorney Nicodemus deferred a planned update on Avery's Law to the next meeting. He confirmed the Fairway Cliffs overlay district is constitutional for future developments but cannot be applied retroactively to the approved plat, citing the Ohio Constitution.
  • Director of Public Service Rowlands congratulated the award winners and requested a favorable consideration of ordinances 12, 18, and 19, and an unfavorable consideration of Ordinance 008-2026.
  • Treasurer Balser provided an update on his on-boarding process, stating he received his bonding and equipment to begin daily operations.

Key Outcomes

  • Defunding of Department of Neighborhoods Rejected: The motion to adopt Ordinance 008-2026, which would have defunded the Department of Neighborhoods, failed in a 3-4 vote. (Yes: Morrison, McCann, Dixon. No: Elmore, Harcar, Adkins, Brown). The department will remain funded.
  • Fiscal Ordinances Adopted: A series of first-reading ordinances (011 through 019) involving fund transfers and supplemental appropriations for various city funds, including the General Fund, Debt Service Fund, Police Grant Fund, Law Enforcement Trust Fund, and Building/Plumbing Permit Funds, were all adopted unanimously by suspension of rules.
  • 2026-2027 Rules of Procedure Passed (Amended): The council passed an amended version of the 2026-2027 Rules of Procedure. The final compiled document incorporating all amendments is expected for formal ratification at the next meeting.
  • Employee of the Year Awards Approved: Resolutions 007 through 010 were unanimously adopted, awarding formal recognition and a $350 payment to the four 2025 Employees of the Year.
  • Investment Policy Revised: Resolution 005-2026, approving revisions to the city's investment policy, was unanimously adopted.

Meeting Transcript

That's what I'm saying. Good evening, everyone, and welcome to the White House City Council agenda meeting of Tuesday, March 3rd, 2026. We will now go over the agenda for this evening's meeting, which will commence at 7 p.m. We'll start with a moment of silence, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance, followed by our roll call. Then we're going to have our approval of the minutes, which included February 16, 2026 special meeting minutes, the February 27, 2026 agenda and regular meeting minutes, as well as the February 24th, 2026 committees, committee meeting minutes. I will need somebody to make a motion and somebody to second. Mr. Potter, I'm sorry for the interruption. I just realized there's no microphone down here for Mr. Asco. It's broken, so you guys will have to speak into that. The one that's right in front of you. Okay. All right. Sorry, my apologies. No, no worries. I just realized. So getting back, who would like to make a motion? I'll make a motion. Thank you, Ms. Harkar. Oh, hackins. Okay. Mr. Atkins, that's fine. Thank you. Then we'll be have the presentation of the 2025 employees of the year. Then we'll move on to the first presentation by Tom Rasciuto. Am I pronouncing that correctly? I believe so. Okay. Okay. We'll then go into our standing committee reports. And after that, we'll go into our officials' reports. And since our last meeting, there have been no reports filed in the council chamber's offices. Under communications, petitions and claims, there have been no communications, petitions, and claims that have been filed in the council office since our last meeting. We'll then have our first poll public of the evening, which will invite anybody to come forward. You'll have three minutes to just state your name. Making appropriation for current general fund 101 expenses for the Department of Neighborhoods and Declaration of an Emergency. Second by Mr. Dixon. They're then going to have a second reading on resolution 5, 2026. Approving revisions to the investment policy of the City of Whitehall and declaring an emergency. This will be introduced by Mr. Brown and second by Mr.

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