Park Plans Fuel Contentious City of Findlay Meeting

Findlay City Council met Tuesday, August 15 with an agenda full of items that have brought wide discussion on social media as well as in the public square. A park with an estimated cost of $10-to-$40-million and administrative procedures provoked interruptions and the pounding of the gavel. The over two-and-a-half hour meeting had council members sparring with each other as well as with the city council president and Mayor Muryn. While the back and forth discussions were somewhat accusatory and uncomfortable, they were necessary to help vet the large ticket items that the city has been planning.

Due to the Blanchard River flooding over the years, many structures have been removed from the banks of the river and the properties purchased by the city. Mayor Muryn has pushed a plan to turn the area into a large park that connects areas in downtown Findlay. According to Muryn, the park is necessary to showcase Findlay and attract young professionals and businesses to the area. 

Five people spoke before city council to oppose the scale of the park plans, while one resident spoke in favor of elaborate plans for the park area. Residents voiced concerns that the city is not being responsible with taxpayer money by planning a park with many expensive amenities. The resident in favor of the project described a vision of a gathering space where residents could participate in festivals and markets. His vision would connect the southern Main Street charm with the northern Main Street college and business areas. One resident compared the plans to buying a Mercedes and asked council to consider looking at Fords or Chevrolets instead. Residents wondered if the project could be built in phases to assure that the project stayed within a budget.

Some city council members shared feedback they received from Findlay constituents both in favor of a large-scale entertainment area while other council members said their constituents have voiced concerns about the large price tag of the legacy park.The legislation currently being considered by the city council is for $1.5 million to design the park. An additional $2.5 million will be paid to complete the design plan in later legislation. Mayor Muryn says the city will be providing $10 million dollars of the entire project’s cost and the remaining amount will be funded by grants and private investors. When asked what grants and investors have been considered, Muryn said that the project is not far enough along to know that information.

City Auditor Jim Stasciak had other concerns with moving the park plan forward. The land in the river area is known to have multiple EPA issues. Tests and studies of the soil are in the works and he believes the plans should be halted until those studies are complete. According to Stasciak, moving forward without knowing if costly remediation would be necessary was irresponsible. Mayor Muryn pushed back saying that she was confident the project could move forward in tandem with waiting for the studies because she was confident that any problems could be addressed. 

As the park ordinance discussion continued, a motion was made to table the ordinance in order to wait for the EPA study results. That motion failed. Discussion continued with a motion made to remove the emergency clause of the ordinance in order to give the public more time to weigh in. The motion passed with three council members voting no. Another motion was made to table the ordinance which passed.

Councilwoman Holly Frische drew pushback from Mayor Muryn when she articulated concern about how the administration has repeatedly failed to follow proper procedures. Frische listed four recent instances where the city administration entered into contracts without presenting those contracts to city council. In some instances, work began within those contracts without council’s approval. Mayor Muryn was notably flustered and defended the circumstances around those mishaps as necessary due to timeline constraints. The ordinance that raised the discussion was an FAA grant that was signed before the council met. The other process discrepancies involved agreements with Findlay City Schools where work had already begun to improve school grounds using city workers. In addition, the City of Findlay had already begun storing equipment on school property with an agreement that the city would demolish the storage structure in exchange for that storage. The contract had been signed without the knowledge of the city council. Frische asserted that it is time to follow the procedures that are put in place to protect the taxpayers.

A committee of the whole report provoked discussion about the transfer of 25 acres of city property to Habitat for Humanity as a “gift.” The unprecedented request generated discussion about the value of the land being transferred and whether sale of the property should be considered instead. The matter will be further discussed by an ad hoc committee. 

Findlay City Council meetings are held the first and third Tuesdays of the month at 6 p.m. in the Council Chambers, located on the first floor of the Municipal Building.