COLUMBUS — Sidney Mayor Mike Barhorst was elected second vice-president of the Mayors Association of Ohio at their annual meeting.
The meeting was held at the Renaissance Hotel in Columbus June 12-14. Barhorst previously served as secretary of the organization.
Celina Mayor Jeff Hazel was elected president of the Mayors Association of Ohio. Glenwillow Mayor Mark Cegelka was elected first vice-president. Batavia Mayor John Thebout was elected Secretary. Bellefontaine Mayor Ben Stahler was elected treasurer.
Lieutenant Governor Jon Husted addressed attendees during the conference. He spoke about rebuilding the relationship between state and local government.
Attendees also had the opportunity to visit the Ohio Statehouse to learn more about legislative advocacy. They sat in on a hearing conducted by the Ohio Senate Finance Committee in which Ohio Municipal League Executive Director Kent Scarrett offered testimony.
Those in attendance also had the opportunity to attend sessions on ethics, crisis communication, public records, code enforcement, Home Rule, and Ohio’s Firefighter Cancer Presumption Law. There were also round table discussions as well as a presentation on DriveOhio, the program that is preparing Ohio for leadership for the future of smart mobility.
The conference also offered mayors the opportunity to visit with exhibitors of products of interest to municipalities. Mayors from across Ohio attended the conference.
“One of the things I like best about the conference is the opportunity to exchange best practices with other mayors,” Barhorst said. “It is amazing what you can learn from a mayor from across the state and in return, information you can share with others about things in your own community.”
“More than 10 million of Ohio’s 11.7 million people live in one of Ohio’s 937 municipalities,” Barhorst continued. “Cities and villages are the engines of Ohio’s economy, with more than 80 percent of all business and industry located in municipalities.”
The purpose of the Mayors Association of Ohio is the improvement of municipal government and the promotion of the general welfare of cities and villages of Ohio. This is accomplished by cooperating with The Ohio Municipal League in the maintenance of a central bureau of information and research for the collection, analysis, and dissemination of information concerning municipal government; the fostering of conferences, meetings, and short courses for the discussion and study of municipal problems and the techniques involved in their solution; and, providing an opportunity for mayors to meet as a separate group for the discussion of the special problems, responsibilities and experiences as heads of cities and villages of the state.
In addition, the Mayors Association of Ohio publishes and issues bulletins and reports on municipal government; encourages a harmony of action among the municipalities of Ohio and other agencies of government in all matters which affect the citizens of Ohio; and, creates an awareness of all levels of government of the problems of municipal government in Ohio by presenting the facts and experiences upon which to formulate sound municipal policies.
