Legislators also accepted a 115-acre wetland donation and awarded the Manor House roof contract
Macedonia City Council met July 23 for its regular meeting and adopted nine pieces of legislation covering police contracts, an opioid settlement, employee pay, council benefits and city property. Members also spent much of the evening recognizing local first responders named in citizen letters, including a dispatcher credited with saving a young child’s life over the phone.
Council Approves Police Contracts, Pay Changes and Property Deals
Council opened new legislation with Ordinance 39-2026 and Ordinance 40-2026, emergency measures ratifying three year collective bargaining agreements with the Fraternal Order of Police covering dispatchers, patrol officers and sergeants through 2028. Both passed unanimously.
Members then adopted Resolution 41-2026, authorizing the mayor to join the Discount Drug Mart settlement within the national opioid litigation. Law Director Mark Guidetti said the settlement offers the city roughly $5,500 with no real downside to accepting. Council had until August 1 to notify the settlement administrator.
Ordinance 42-2026, which sets pay for non union employees, passed after an amendment raised the maximum of pay grade 12 by 8 percent and pay grade 14 by 6 percent. Officials said the change addresses wage compression between staff levels. The vote carried with one council member opposed.
Council also adopted Ordinance 43-2026, ending city health care eligibility for future council members. Current members remain eligible through the end of their present terms. One member said prior councils enacted the benefit in 2012 and called it “too much of a perk for council” today.
Members unanimously approved Ordinance 44-2026, awarding a contract to Durable Slate Company for a full roof replacement at the Manor House. Service Director Daniel Wilson said two competing bids came in within $10,000 of each other, and staff recommended the specialty slate company given the technical nature of the material. Officials said a properly installed slate roof can last 50 to 75 years and will help protect the historic structure from water damage.
Council then adopted Ordinance 45-2026, accepting the donation of 115.6 acres of wetland property near Route 8 and Highland Road from the Western Reserve Land Conservancy. Deed restrictions will limit the land to conservancy use such as trails, and officials said no development will be permitted.
Ordinance 46-2026 appropriated $1,000 to the Historical Society of Old Northfield for a new furnace at the Palmer House Museum, an increase over the usual $500 annual donation. Council learned the museum never actually received its 2025 donation because of a clerical error that has since been corrected.
Resolution 47-2026 authorized the Parks and Recreation Department to sell twelve worn treadmills, each with an estimated 60,000 to 70,000 miles of use, through the GovDeals online auction platform. Proceeds will go toward new equipment. Council also accepted a $50 donation for Senior Center activities.
Residents Update Council on Palmer House and Holiday Charity
During public comments, a Historical Society of Old Northfield representative thanked council for tracking down the previous year’s missing $500 donation and detailed ongoing repairs at the Palmer House Museum. She said a completed window project and an upcoming water line restoration led the group to redirect leftover funds toward a new furnace, adding, “You’re going to see me out shaking the donation can for this.” Organizers still need about $4,000 to finish the project.
Representatives of Community Christmas Connection, a coalition of nine area churches and several local businesses, described their first annual holiday shopping event held last December. The group served 55 families and 118 children, distributing 590 presents and more than 1,000 stocking stuffers, along with over 100 donated bicycles. “By the community, for the community,” one organizer said, describing the effort’s guiding principle. Organizers said their goal this year is to double the number of families served.
A resident also thanked city staff for installing new “no truck turn” signage near South Bedford Road, an effort aimed at reducing truck traffic in the area.
Letters Recognize Officers, Dispatcher and Fire Medics
Council reviewed 22 pieces of correspondence, several highlighting local first responders. The Summit County Prosecutor’s Office named Macedonia Police Officer Chad Redburn among its summer 2026 Top Cops. Assistant Prosecutor Mitchell credited Redburn’s investigation of a stolen vehicle report with leading to the arrest, prosecution and conviction of a suspect later found in possession of child sexual abuse material and other evidence.
A letter from a Macedonia police sergeant commended an officer for repeated life saving chest compressions performed during a pedestrian versus vehicle crash on July 3, in heavy rain, that helped keep the victim alive through transport to the hospital.
Other letters thanked a Macedonia dispatcher and fire medics for guiding a resident through a medical emergency involving his wife, and credited paramedics with identifying a serious blockage during a separate resident’s heart attack call.
The most detailed letter, from Police Sergeant Dan Mateeka, credited Dispatcher Elias with saving the life of a three year old autistic child who wandered from his Warren Hills area home on June 20. Mateeka wrote that Elias asked the boy’s mother targeted questions about his interests, which led the mother to check a neighbor’s pool, where the child was found unresponsive. Elias then walked the mother through CPR instructions by phone until the child began breathing again. “I feel Dispatcher Elias did an excellent job utilizing her skills, training and tools to save the child’s life,” Mateeka wrote. Mayor Nicholas Molnar said Elias will be invited to a future meeting for formal recognition.
Mayor Updates Council on BP Site, Gas Lines and Power Outages
Molnar addressed the long running dispute over the former BP and 7-Eleven site. Guidetti said the property owner lost a foreclosure case earlier this year, and city led demolition efforts remain paused while a Court of Common Pleas judge allows the Planning Commission to review a proposed use for the site. A hearing is scheduled for September 14.
Molnar also addressed a natural gas drilling moratorium enacted after a pipeline strike in nearby Twinsburg, saying the city has resumed reviewing excavation permits internally with added safety steps.
Repeated vehicle strikes on overhead power lines near Freeway Drive prompted the city to work with FirstEnergy to raise pole heights from 40 feet to 50 feet, restoring clearance to about 16 feet 6 inches. “The past several days have sucked the entire life out of me,” Molnar said of the outages.
Department Reports Cover Summer Projects
Directors outlined summer work across the city. The Parks and Recreation Department will install new ball field netting at Longwood Park in early August and expects a new permanent restroom at Sugarbush Park later in the month. The recreation building will close August 23 through September 7 for its annual deep clean and lap pool resurfacing, reopening after Labor Day.
The Building Department reported the Vidi Landing project on Valley View Road is nearing completion. The Finance Department noted the July 15 RITA filing deadline has passed and refunds are being processed. The Fire Department said Macedonia now has representation on every Summit County mutual aid team after filling its final opening on the incident management assistance team. The Law Department welcomed part time dispatcher Bruce Genovese back to the police department.
