The Oxford City Council approved safety resolutions and the disbursement of community assistance funding in its meeting on Oct.6.
Oxford Mayor Mike Smith proclaimed Sept. 15 to Oct. 15 as National Hispanic Latinx Heritage Month. He recognized the diverse contributions and cultural influence of the Latinx community to the city of Oxford.
Miami University Associated Student Government Secretary Zoe Erickson discussed student safety initiatives and the Good Samaritan policy regarding drug and alcohol use.
“These concerns are important to both the university and the Oxford community,” Erickson said. “They highlight the need for continued communication and collaboration between the students, university, city of Oxford and the residents.”
The council voted to adopt a resolution to initiate a paving program targeting buildings in the northwest quadrant and Spring Street area of Oxford.
A $330,000 grant will supplement the typical paving budget for next year’s program. Property owners will be given a longer notice than usual to have more time to prepare for construction.
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Council approved an agreement with Verdantas LLC to produce a “Safe Streets For All” comprehensive safety action plan. The project is supported by a $200,000 grant and requires a $50,000 match from the city.
The plan includes more on-foot surveillance, cameras, focus on near misses and interaction with Miami University and the Talawanda City School District.
Police Chief John Jones presented a resolution to apply and accept a $250,000 public safety grant through the Ohio Department of Public Safety.
The funds are used to pay for extra patrols and sobriety checkpoints across the city.
City council approved the disbursement of the community assistance funding for the 2027 proposed budget.
A total of $788,893 was requested by various organizations following an application period that ended on Aug. 24.
The organizations include the Oxford Community Foundation, the Oxford Community Arts Center, Talawanda Oxford Pantry and Social Services, Oxford Seniors, McCullough-Hyde Foundation, the Oxford Catty Shack, ThreadUp Oxford, Coalition for a Healthy Community, Oxford Citizens for Peace and Justice and the Knolls of Oxford.
Many of these organizations were granted less money than requested, for example, ThreadUp Oxford requested $86,593 and received $11,000.
Bob Black, Executive Director of ThreadUp Oxford, talked about the organization’s role in meeting the need for accessible clothing in Oxford.
“Most of their discussion centered around what support was offered in the past,” Black said. “There was little meaningful discussion of what the money was requested for, the importance of that money to the organization’s mission or how it benefits the people of Oxford.”
Shana Rosenberg, founder of ThreadUp, requested additional financial support to stabilize the organization after a period of debt and restructuring.
“We have made mistakes, learned from them, changed and succeeded at the mission that we have chosen,” Rosenberg said. “We want to return to the city council in the future and tell you how much more our partnership has allowed us to accomplish for the people of Oxford.”
Councilor Bill Snavely proposed using the city’s “rainy-day” fund to provide additional funding for one year so that ThreadUp has an opportunity to stabilize.
“If they don’t do anything in that year, then we would have another decision to make,” Snavely said.
Alex French expressed concern about setting a precedent by making exceptions for chosen organizations rather than following a regularly used allocation process.
“I want to make sure we’ve done every bit of due diligence that we can,” French said. “If another organization comes forward and asks why and what our logic was, we need to have a firm ground to stand on.”
The council agreed to vote on the current request but will return to discuss increased funding in the upcoming budget work session on Oct. 12.
The Oxford City Council will meet at 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 20 at the Oxford Courthouse, 118 W. High St for their next regular meeting.
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