Romano Honored for State Swim Championship at Council Meeting; Re-Zoning Ordinance Passes
By Chris Johnson on April 23, 2024
As far as City Council meetings go, Monday’s was a short one.
There were just three items of new business on the agenda and two of them were discussed in executive session.
The meeting was fast, but still not as fast as the Bridgeport High School standout athlete present to be honored during the awards and presentations portion of the meeting.
BHS junior Amelia Romano, one of the premier swimmers in the entire state, was recognized by Council for winning the the 200 freestyle state championship at the Mylan Aquatic Center in February with a time of 1:58.91.
Romano entered the state meet with the top time in the 200 free at 1:59.66. In preliminaries, she swam a 2:01.08 which was behind her friend and regional rival, Elkins’ Rachel Shryock’s 2:00.14. Shyrock was the runner-up in the finals with a time of 1:59.62.
“It’s an honor to be able to accomplish this,” Romano said after a presentation by Mayor Andy Lang. “I want to say thank you to everybody who supported me along the way.”
The one piece of business Council did approve was an ordinance for the amendment of Phase II of The White Oaks Business Park by amending the city’s zoning ordinance and amending the zoning map of 11.46 acres along White Oaks Boulevard.
“This step is just procedural,” Community Development Director Andrea Kerr said. “The planning commission has unanimously recommended to rezone this parcel. They have already subdivided the 11.4 acres where the housing development will go.
“They are putting in a residential development and would like to rezone from B-2 (Business-2) to R-3 (Residential- 3) as it will be a mix of multi-family and single-family.”
Kerr added that the planned total for houses at the development is 41.
Council went into executive session to discuss the search for a new City Manager, including authorization for the City Manager to hire special counsel.
Police Chief Mark Rogers has filled in as Interim City Manager since Brian Newton resigned on July 1, 2023.
There was a work session prior to the start of the regular meeting, which was also conducted in executive session.
Father Walt Jagela of All Saints Catholic Church provided the invocation which was followed by the Pledge of Allegiance to start the regular meeting.
In his Mayor’s report, Lang reflected on attending Opening Day for Little League and Challenger League as well getting out to a couple of spaghetti dinners and different events.
“What a wonderful town we live in,” Lang said. “I wouldn’t want to live any place else.”
Rogers in his City Manager’s report also talked about the Opening Day festivities at The Bridge Sports Complex.
“I just want to congratulate Droo (Callahan) and his staff out there for a good Opening Day and getting the bleachers completed in a timely fashion,” Rogers said.
Former Harrison County Prosecuting Attorney Joe Shaffer spoke during the public comment portion of the meeting in regard to his running for Circuit Court Judge Division II for Harrison County.
Editor's Note:Top photo shows Romano with her family. Middle photo features the Romano family with Lang and bottom photo is of Kerr.
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