CAMDEN — The Village of Camden council held its second semi-monthly meeting May 16.

Clerk of Courts Nancy Melton proposed putting procedures in place to allow village residents to pay fines and other bills electronically, using debit or credit cards, as well as allowing those transactions to be processed online.

“That’s standard practice everywhere,” council member Kelly Doran said. “There’s no reason somebody needs to come into our offices to do this in 2019.”

Council voted unanimously to move forward with the process.

Doran also proposed a number of potential new grant-funded projects, including the construction of a new water tower and the possibility of expanding the village’s water system to allow it to interconnect with those of neighboring communities such as Eaton and Lakengren. This would not only allow the village to assist other communities that might be experiencing a shortage, according to Doran, but might also allow them to sell water to those communities as an added source of revenue.

Doran asked other council members to submit ideas to him for potential projects, and said that grants and funding specilaist Susan Laux, of Greenville-based Mote & Associates Inc., would be present during council’s next meeting to discuss the grant application process.

In other news:

• Village administrator Rusty Wilson proposed adding two speed bumps to the section of South St beginning at U.S. 127 and ending at S. Liberty St.
• Council voted to accept a $7,450.01 bid from Preble County resident Cody Truster for purchase of a backhoe owned by the village. An earlier bid from Truster was rejected during the council’s previous meeting after the envelope containing the bid was accidentally opened prematurely by a city employee. As a result it was determined that bids would be resubmitted in time for the May 16 meeting.
• Council member Ernest Crabtree made a motion to carry out all sales of village property and equipment through the website govdeals.com. Council approved the motion unanimously.