The Lebanon City Council Met Monday in the Francis Dixon Council Chamber in City Hall to
review a brief June agenda.
At the beginning of the meeting, Council asked those in attendance to partake in a moment
of silence for the lives of Joshua Lugo-Perez, 19, Jesus Perez-Salome, 8, and Sebastian Perez-
Salome, 9, which were lost in the time between the last city council meeting.
Mayor Capello then announced to the Council and public that former Deputy Fire Chief A.J.
Sweitzer has been hired to fill the role of Fire Chief effective June 5th, 2023. This position
was left vacant when the previous Fire Chief, Duane Trautman, resigned from office.
Mayor Capello said that the city interviewed “a niece field of candidates” as they sought to
fill the vacancy but ultimately found that Sweitzer, who had been functioning in the position
as an interim fire chief, had the best mix of professional and administrative experience to fill
the role indefinitely.
The Council also reviewed and voted unanimously in support of Bill No. 11, which, if passed
on final reading in the July meeting, will establish a new fee schedule for the Trash and
Recycling Center at 8th and Walton Street in Lebanon.
Mayor Capello said that the previous owners of the Weidle Sanitation Company had given
the city a discounted rate for trash disposal and recycling services for several years;
however, recently, the business was sold to Goods Sanitation, which is now increasing the
fees.
Mayor Capello said that for businesses, the trash removal services will increase from $50-
$75, services for housing with more than three units in them will now cost $40, and services
for housing with three or fewer units will cost $30. Additionally, late fees will cost $5, and
key fobs for access to the facility will cost $5 (along with replacement fobs).
In other business:
Mayor Capello said as of the most recent budget report that, the city is approximately 42%
completed with the budget yet, has collected 63% of anticipated revenues, and has spent
29% of expected expenditures. Relative to the budget, this means that the city has collected
approximately $8,907,358 and has spent $4,538,379.
The Community Development Administrator Melissa Quinones gave the Council various
updates during the Thursday Pre-Council meeting, including an update on three summer
programs that the city is hosting for the youth, informing the Council of various positions
that the city is still trying to fill, and notifying the Council that the city is preparing for its
2023 audit.
Darryl Cox of 492 North Sixth Street requested time to speak before the Council regarding
several issues that he has noticed. Cox, who at one point served on Council, spoke to the
Council about numerous issues specifically pertaining to poor communication regarding
road resurfacing/redevelopment, poor maintenance of alleyways, lack of
response/enforcement pertaining to trash buildup outside of homes, and poor facade
appearance throughout the city.
Mayor Capello responded by saying that the city encourages citizens to report instances of
blight, illegal trash storage, etc… and that the city will issue fines to those who violate city
ordinances.
Additionally, Mayor Capello said that the city is trying to complete the road resurfacing
projects as quickly as possible and understands the inconvenience that the development
may have on residents. She asked that residents remain patient with the development as it
will significantly improve conditions within the city once they are completed.
The next pre-city council meeting will occur on July 20th at 4:45pm in the Francis Dixon City
Council Chamber located in City Hall, and City Council meeting will be on July 24th, at
6:30pm in the same location.
Author: Alisher Aminov
