Wellman

A landlord in Wellman, Spencer Miller, who owns 313½ on 9th Ave., was proposing to split his properties.

Miller owns three rental homes on one parcel and wants to sell them individually. However, city administrator Kelly Litwiller said the property does not meet subdivision requirements because it is accessed from an alley rather than having frontage on a public street.

Litwiller said city code allows multiple houses on one lot, but Miller would need a condo association to sell them individually.

“He was told when he started building these, that the only way that he could sell them individually is if he did a condo association.”

However, council member Nathan Klostermann said Miller claimed he did not learn of the requirement until May 2026. According to Miller’s account, subcontractors had been secured, investments made and materials, including lumber packages, purchased.

“So whether that’s true or not, I don’t…” Klostermann told the council. He continued, “I mean, I guess hearsay is hearsay.”

Litwiller explained the attorney’s guidance: “That’s where the attorney then said we will allow him to do as a condo association.”

Miller originally planned to keep the homes as rentals. Litwiller said she thought he was having difficulty renting them and had interested buyers.

The attorney advised against the parcel split, and the Planning and Zoning Commission also opposed it. Miller could sell the entire property together or establish a condo association to sell the homes individually. He is instead seeking a parcel split.

The council wanted clarification from the city attorney on apparently conflicting city code provisions and voted to table discussion of the proposed split.

Memorial project

Mayor Ryan Miller said landscaping could begin by the end of the week, weather permitting, with granite installation expected the following week.

He hoped the memorial project would be completed by the end of October and Klostermann suggested Veterans Day, Wednesday, Nov. 11, as a safer target.

Urban renewal report

Litwiller said the urban renewal report was prepared, but she remained unsure how to report a $41,000 internal transfer.

“We had to show the debt in order to certify the debt for the Compass Memorial stuff,” she said.

The city transferred local option sales tax money to TIF as an internal loan. Litwiller said she subsequently received guidance that the transaction should have been recorded internally on paper. The urban renewal report had no place to enter the transfer, she said, because it reports TIF money received from the county.

She was awaiting state clarification after receiving conflicting guidance. Fiscal year 2026 had already been closed out, so any correction would have to be made in the current fiscal year, potentially with an explanation accompanying the report.

With time remaining before the December deadline, the council voted to table the report.

Other business

Litwiller planned to meet with engineers Thursday to review chip-and-seal work, grading, sidewalks and erosion concerns as the water main project winds down.

The spaghetti fundraiser is scheduled for Oct. 15, from 5 to 7:30 p.m. at the Goodwin Dining Center. Trunk or Treat is Oct. 25, from 1:30 to 4 p.m., with door-to-door trick-or-treating Oct. 31.

Next meeting

The next Wellman city council meeting will take place on Monday, October 19 at 5:30 p.m. at city hall.