NEW KNOXVILLE – State Route 219 pavement repairs and speed limits were a main topic of the New Knoxville Village Council meeting Wednesday night, Aug. 11.

Larry Kellermeyer, village administrator, told council the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) said their state agency could not pay for repairs of pavement failures along the edge of state Route 219 on the west side of town. Kellermeyer said instead, road repairs within the village’s corporation limits were to be paid through the village’s portion of the gas tax. He said the estimated cost to repair the approximately 100 feet of broken pavement would cost around $21,000. Village fiscal officer Abby Homan said it would take approximately four years to accumulate that amount of funding from their gas tax appropriation. Kellermeyer said they would see if ODOT could come up with another solution.

Work has begun to reduce speed limits along state Route 219 on the east side of town from 50 mph to 35 mph. Council’s Streets and Sidewalk committee chair Carolyn Bock said ODOT officials told her the village had the option to reduce speeds from the corporation limit into town. With the building of new homes along that street, she said it would be prudent to reduce speeds there. The village administrator will start the process by requesting an ODOT speed study.

In the next couple of weeks, business and home owners with neglected property maintenance will be receiving a letter from the village asking them to repair and/or clean up their land. Kellermeyer said he and village Police Chief Chris McKinney were composing the letter and mailing list.

In other action, council had the first reading of an ordinance to approve amendments to the official zoning codes recommended by their village planning commission. The changes primarily involve the placement of pools and fences as well as a prohibition of any type of race track inside village limits.

The council also had a second reading of an ordinance allowing village employees to roll over a maximum of 40 hours of vacation time into the following year.

The next council meeting will be Wednesday, Sept. 8 at 7:30 p.m.