T-L Photo/JOSIE BURKHART Bridgeport Village Council meets Monday without taking action on any issues due to a lack of quorum. Members here listen to concerned residents.

BRIDGEPORT — Bridgeport council members were not able to take action during a Monday meeting due to a lack of quorum.

The three members not in attendance were Councilwoman Doris Dunkle, who had an emergency arise right before the meeting, Councilman David Holmes and Councilman Ben Lenz.

After Mayor Norma Teasdale explained that they wouldn’t be able to take action on any issues, she moved on to the residents who had concerns about the village.

Sally Horn addressed an empty lot near her house that has two large trees near her fence, one of which is a pine tree that is dropping cones and damaging her roof. The other tree that is damaging her fence.

“The limbs have fallen from this tree because I guess it’s dying,” she said. “And now my fence goes (in different directions) into places. So I need help.”

Horn mentioned that she addressed the issue of cones falling onto her roof a couple of years ago but was told nothing could be done about it because Teasdale said she didn’t have the manpower to resolve this problem.

The property lot has been abandoned since the owner of it died about 20 years ago, she said.

Teasdale told Horn that Village Superintendent Travis Snodgrass would be able to go take a look at the property and her house today so they can start making repairs to the damage.

Candy Palmer, another Bridgeport resident, discussed the letter she sent to council asking permission to access a road to make a parking spot.

Teasdale said Snodgrass looked into her concern. She had Palmer write her phone number down so officials can contact her today with answers.

Palmer expressed another concern about a resident who parks their car on the street outside of their house off the turn of Lombardy Heights, where the road is very narrow, which could cause first responders to not be able to get through. Palmer said she lives above the house, so this is a safety concern for her.

“It’s a matter, you know, of saving a life,” she said. “You have so many minutes to get there and asking people to move their cars out of the way because the street is so narrow, you just can’t park there.”

Police Chief John Bumba immediately dispatched one of his officers to check on the complaint.

Resident Carol Goodwin came with to the meeting concerns regarding a slip on the main strip of Michael Street.

“And if it breaks down here, all the waterlines are in there, the gas lines are in there,” they said. “And if you’re on it with a car, you’re going to roll over the hill to (U.S.) 250, and I just wanted to know if you’re aware of this.”

Village Engineer Bryan May said he was not aware of the slip but will work to address the issue.

A Kirkwood Presbyterian Church staff member discussed a letter he had sent to council wanting to start the conversation to see if the village would be interested in acquiring the church property and the building at a favorable price. The congregation decided its last service will be on Good Friday of 2025.

Shaheen said that while the village remains under the auspices of the Economic Review Committee, it would technically be able to enter into a contract to acquire something new. However, he said because the village is a plaintiff in four different court cases that have to do with contaminated water, it would be much better equipped to have that conversation in three to six months.

Shaheen told the resident to come back to a November council meeting to reopen the discussion.

Eric Caldwell from Jochum Waste addressed council wanting to extend the contract he has with the village after his company took over the community’s refuse needs, purchased its truck and purchased its containers in October 2021.

“Our drivers are familiar with the area. They’re familiar with the routes,” he said. “You don’t want to have a big change in removing all the dumpsters, some new company bringing in all the dumpsters, you know, and we’re just familiar with it. We’ve done it for the past 36 months and would just like to do an extension on the current contract.”

Council could not act on the matter Monday, but Shaheen told Teasdale to add it to the agenda for another meeting so council can discuss it.

Teasdale said the village will be holding Halloween festivities on Oct. 31. She discussed a potential parade for the village that would begin at Bennett Street. The parade would start at 5 p.m., with lineup at 4:30 p.m. and judging of costumes during the parade. Teasdale also wishes to contact the school’s band for the parade.

The village will have a special council meeting at 6 p.m. Thursday at the municipal building.