Bowerston council swears in members

Bowerston Village Council met Jan. 20, with Solicitor James Ong administering the oath of office to four returning council members.

Polly Wolfe and Chase Bryant won reelection in the November 2025 general election. Janet Hanlon and Cindy Slentz joined council in 2025 for terms that expired Dec. 31. Ong administered the oath for new terms expiring Dec. 31, 2029.

After the organizational portion of the meeting, Mayor Paula Beamer presented Ordinance 2026-1 for council review and discussion. Beamer said she worked with Ong to draft legislation intended to clarify the duties of the village fiscal officer.

The ordinance would eliminate the income tax clerk position, which Beamer said is no longer needed as the village transitions to the Regional Income Tax Agency, which will administer village income tax collections.

Beamer said remaining tasks for income tax administration will be absorbed by the fiscal officer. The ordinance also includes a $200-per-month salary increase for the fiscal officer, she said.

Beamer said training with the Regional Income Tax Agency will be complete by Feb. 6 and she hopes to establish evening and weekend office hours to assist residents with the transition. She said more details will be released after council’s February meeting.

Beamer also reported that the village’s sewer upgrade project broke ground the day before.

“It is encouraging to see a project that the team has been working on since 2020 finally starting to happen,” she said.

Village Administrator Bart Busby said he and utility operator Jeremiah Warner will work closely with project inspectors “to ensure that all steps are completed as they should be.”

Council also:

 — Authorized the mayor and village administrator to make adjustments and plans for customer utility billings as needed through Resolution 1-2026 

— Approved an OMEGA service agreement for environmental review at a cost of $20,000, to be paid from CDBG grant funds 

— Learned the mayor and village employees completed required cyber training 

— Set 2026 meeting dates as the third Tuesday of each month at 6 p.m. in Village Hall 

— Elected Bryant as council president for 2026 

— Scheduled a special bonds committee meeting for Monday, Jan. 26, at 6 p.m.