Members of the Toledo City Council convened on Monday, June 2, for their first regular meeting of the month at Toledo City Hall.
Among the many agenda items and issues discussed at Monday’s meeting included a new employment contract for Toledo City Clerk-Treasurer Rachel Campbell.
Mayor Cherie Devore also asked for applicants for two vacant Toledo Planning Commission vacancies.
Additionally, Toledo Public Works Department Assistant Director Jay Crow also announced the second round of polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) testing had been conducted on the city’s water supply and the samples had been sent off for analysis. The council also voted to surplus old desks and chairs no longer in use.
During the public comment section of the meeting, Dr. Sandy Hare returned to talk about the results of the Toledo Community Clean Up Day the previous weekend on Saturday, May 31.
And following the discussion of the fire danger after 2024’s July 4 fireworks show in downtown Toledo during last month’s council meeting by Teresa Reynolds, manager of the nearby Toledo Hardware and Feed and Flying K gas station, Lewis County Fire District 2 Commissioner Bob Moore reiterated the concerns Reynolds detailed last month.
New clerk-treasurer contract
The first agenda item was Campbell’s new employment contract, which Toledo City Councilor Jamie Scalise raised concerns about.
Scalise’s concern revolved around the amount of severance pay granted by the contract if Campbell’s employment with the city was terminated without cause. If Campbell is fired without cause by the city within her first two years of service, the city will provide her with three months of base salary.
If she’s fired without cause anywhere between two and five years into working for Toledo, Campbell will get six months of base salary, and being fired without cause anytime beyond five years will have the city giving her nine months’ base salary. Campbell will continue receiving health insurance during this time as well.
“The fact that we are a small city scrambling for funds to get stuff repaired … And the fact that we’re also authorizing insurance for the duration of however long it is, I think we need to be more fiscally responsible,” Scalise said. “We don’t have the funds to do that. I think it puts us in a very, very perilous position. It’s basically a big corporation severance package, and we are not a big corporation.”
Toledo Mayor Cherie Devore stated the reasoning for the severance package language in the contract was to prevent the next mayor from coming in and arbitrarily deciding they don’t like Campbell and firing her.
“It also protects the city so she can’t just walk out and leave us scrambling,” Devore said. “I understand it, I hear what you’re saying about the costs.”
Councilor Eric Hayes stated when he first came to the council three years ago, he spoke with city employees and their biggest concern about working for the city was the fact after every election they had to worry about possibly being fired without warning by the new incoming mayor and council.
“I don’t look at it as a fiscal decision or a place to save money, but as something to help Toledo be secure,” Hayes said.
He added down Interstate 5 in Kalama, the city’s contract for their clerk/treasurer was modeled in the same way.
While Scalise understood the need for a job security guarantee for city employees, she still believed the city could not afford to pay out that much severance pay.
Ultimately, Campbell’s new contract was approved by a vote of 4-2 with Councilors Tawni Shepherd and Scalise opposing it.
Planning Commission volunteers needed
Devore also called for volunteers to fill a pair of vacancies on the Toledo Planning Commission.
“If anybody here is interested in joining the planning commission, we do need to fill those two vacancies,” Devore said. “You get to have your say, put in your input, on where Toledo grows from here. The more input we have, the better.”
Applications can be filled out and submitted at Toledo City Hall, located at 130 N. Second St. in downtown Toledo.
According to the city’s website, one vacancy can be filled by any resident living within Toledo city limits, while the other seat is open to residents living within the 360-864 telephone prefix area around Toledo.
Applicants must be at least 18, a registered voter and have lived at their current residence for at least one year. Deadline to apply is June 15.
For more information, visit the city’s website at https://toledowa.us/notice-planning-commission-vacancy-2/.
PFAS testing continues, desks and chairs surplused
During the public works update, Crow told the council the second round of PFAS testing conducted on both of Toledo’s wells had been sent off to the lab.
“Results are pending,” Crow said. “We also completed (testing for) IOCs (inorganic chemicals) for well two as scheduled.”
He added city staff members are currently preparing curbs to be repainted around town.
As for the desks and chairs, the City of Toledo has several old wooden desks along with over a dozen purple chairs the council voted to surplus.
Both the desks and chairs are currently in storage at Toledo City Hall, and anyone interested in purchasing them can visit city hall during regular business hours for more information.
If no buyer comes forward, Devore stated they might be donated to the Toledo Senior Center.
Clean up day and fireworks concerns
As for this past weekend’s Toledo Community Clean Up Day organized by Dr. Hare, she stated a total of 42 volunteers showed up for the event and they were able to clean up multiple locations around the South Lewis County community, including around the old jail, around the water tower, the South County Park Wallace Pond area and the boat ramp along with the areas around all the schools.
She added she was happy with the volunteer turnout.
“We had 42 volunteers. I was hoping we would get 12 to 20,” Hare said. “... We had 20 project. They all got done with the exception of a little more power washing we needed to take care of, but we were running out of time.”
Volunteers ranged in age from 8 to over 80, and included local high school students earning volunteer hours.
Toledo Market Fresh donated $126 worth of food for lunch for the volunteers. Hare added Toledo Cheese Depot co-owner Kyle Wheeler also gave volunteers a discount on cheese and snacks that day.
Hare stated she is planning another community clean up day in the fall for the neighborhoods in Toledo.
As for the fireworks concerns, Moore restated many of the concerns raised about the fireworks show’s proximity to the Toledo Hardware and Feed and Flying K gas station.
“I did not attend the fireworks last year, but July 5 I came down here at 7 o’clock and I could not believe my eyes,” Moore said.
He stated fireworks’ debris was everywhere, covering not only the hardware store and gas station but both city hall and the fire station as well.
“There were thousands and thousands of white sulfur pellets all over the place,” Moore added.
Moore believes granting the fireworks permit again this year was not worth the risk.
“It has the potential like the 2010 fire, where two blocks went up (in flames). I'm not trying to scare you, but the potential is there,” Moore said.
Devore told Moore that the fireworks show’s organizers have yet to apply for a permit this year, but both his concerns and the concerns raised at the previous meeting will be taken into consideration.
“As far as we know, it’s not even happening,” Devore said.
