NEW PARIS — Susan Laux of Mote & Associates provided the New Paris Village Council with updates on numerous projects going on throughout the village during their regular meeting on Monday, Nov. 2.

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) has made a Land and Water Conservation Grant available for park improvements.

The grant is a “50/50” grant, which Laux said means it is 50 percent grant and 50 percent match. The minimum amount that can be requested is $50,000, which means $50,000 would then need to be provided for a $100,000 project.

Mayor Kathy Smallwood said she believed they wouldn’t be able to raise $50,000, though if they work with the park committee, they may be able to raise the money together.

With applications being due Nov. 16, the council passed Resolution 2020-18 to the application to be prepared and submitted, forgoing the three-reading rule by passing as an emergency.

If not enough money is not raised for the project, the application can be withdrawn.

Other updates:

• $45,000 will be available next July for the High Street Bridge after it was recommended for funding.
• The splash pad is ready for utilities and concrete, and the footprint has been slightly expanded to create a bigger splash pad.
• The Cardinal Hill Reconstruction Project will begin this winter and will be constructed next summer.
• A Nature Works Grant has also been made available from ODNR. Applications are due June 1, 2020, and would be a 25/75 grant, meaning the state would provide 75 percent.

In other business

• The October safety report showed 98 calls for service, 29 reports, 22 warnings, 21 citations and three arrests.
• The New Paris Chamber of Commerce is sponsoring a Veterans Day event on Nov. 11 with military vehicles, a cookout and different displays at the corner of W. Maine and N. Washington Street in front of the antique store.
• Council passed the first reading of Ordinance 2020-13 concerning indigent burial in the village. The village will be allowed to pay a sum of money for cremation expenses to or for the benefit of the estate of someone who died indigent – someone who is considered to be poor, needy or poverty-stricken – while having a permanent residency in the village.
• Council passed Resolution 2020-17, a request for amended certificate of estimated resources, to reflect the last CARES Act funding check of $56,648.19.
• The other following ordinances and resolutions were approved: Ordinance 2020-12, personnel handbook – second reading; Ordinance 2020-14, ordinance declaring 208 N. High St. a nuisance.

The next New Paris Village Council meeting will be held on Monday, Dec. 7 at 7 p.m. at the City Building.