Oxford City Council says goodbye to familiar faces, welcomes new ones

The Nov. 18 Oxford City Council meeting marked the final session for Councilor David Prytherch and Vice Mayor Chantel Raghu – and Mayor Bill Snavely’s last meeting as mayor – as the city also approved playground upgrades, the State Homeland Security grant application, water main improvements and more.

Saying their goodbyes

Jessica Greene, assistant city manager for the City of Oxford, spoke to the council during the announcements and communication segment of the meeting to highlight the achievements and goals of the council in acknowledgement of the final meetings of Raghu and Prytherch.

“Your top goals, way back when you first started, (were) housing, climate sustainability, economic development and then, we passed a brand-new comprehensive plan,” Greene said. 

Raghu and Prytherch both served on the Oxford City Council for eight years. During that time, both contributed to nearly 50 new housing units currently planned for Oxford, launching solar projects across town and supporting economic development, among other things.

“We built trails, we passed a fire levy and hired new firefighters,” Greene said. “Because of you, we have a cold shelter this year.” 

“You’ve made us stronger,” Greene said. “Thank you for your service.”

Raghu and Prytherch both shared their thanks to members and workers for the city as well as their fellow councilors. 

“I spent my thirties here,” Raghu said. “This has been one of the most rewarding things I’ve ever done.”

Prytherch echoed the same sentiment.

“It is a huge privilege to be a part of this,” Prytherch said. “Thank you.”

Roxanne Ornelas and Jim Vinch will take over the seats of Raghu and Prytherch and be sworn in as Oxford city councilors on Monday, Nov. 24 at 7 p.m. during an Oxford City Council Organizational Meeting. Their first Oxford City Council meeting will be on Dec. 2 at 7 p.m.

Snavely shared with the council that the Nov. 18 meeting will be his final meeting as the mayor of Oxford. While Snavely will step down from mayoral duties, he will stay on the council as a member.

“It’s time for me to step back and be a council member for the final two years,” Snavely said.

A new mayor will be appointed by the Oxford City Council at the organizational meeting on Nov. 24.

Replacement playground at the Oxford Community Park

A resolution was brought to the city council allowing the city manager to enter a contract with DWA Recreation, a parks and recreation business based in Harrison, Ohio, to construct a replacement playground at the Oxford Community Park. 

Funds from the 2025 Community Development Block Grant will be used to update the playground. The city has a budget of $112,043 for this project.

Chad Smith, director of parks and recreation, stated to the council that there were five submittals for this project, and DWA Recreation “scored the highest.”

The new playground will function for 2- to 5-year-olds, according to Smith, and will be located near the baseball fields. 

“The one that’s there now is the original, so it’s 20 plus years old,” Smith said. “This (new) one will pair nicely with the larger playground a little bit down from there that was replaced a couple years ago.”

This resolution was adopted by the council.

State Homeland Security Grant program 

Greene presented a resolution authorizing the city to apply for $353,500 from the 2025 State Homeland Security Grant to purchase event safety barricades and weapon-screening tools.

Earlier this year, the Oxford City Council asked Greene and the city to research ways to improve event safety and strategies to mitigate risks associated with large gatherings. 

This grant has two project submissions, according to Greene – the primary one focusing on portable vehicle barriers, costing $250,000 and the secondary one focusing on walkthrough and handheld metal detectors, costing $103,500.

Oxford Police Chief John Jones spoke to the council about these assets also being used in sporting events and athletics. 

Councilor David Prytherch expressed interest in using these barricades on weekends around the alley between CJ’s and Mac & Joes to prevent drivers from entering that area.

High Street water main contract

Mike Dreisbach, service director for the City of Oxford, presented a resolution which would allow the city to enter an agreement with an excavating group, Elam’s Excavating LLC, a contracting group based in Goshen, Ohio.

This agreement would allow for the city and the contractor to replace and upsize the High Street water main from Elm Street to College Avenue. 

This project would cost the city $185,933.04. The contract includes a contingency valued at $18,593.30, with the agreement not exceeding $204,526.34 in total.

“This is the final leg of upsizing an antiquated 10-inch cast iron main,” Dreisbach said. 

The future installation will increase capacity of the water main by 44%, according to Dreisbach.

This resolution was adopted by the council.

New city attorney contract

Another resolution allowing the city manager to sign a new agreement with Christopher R. Conrad, an attorney at Coolidge Wall Co. L.P.A., was presented to the council.

Conrad is also the current city attorney, and this new contract aims to increase hourly pay and retainer.

The hourly rate will be increased by $30 – from $155 per hour to $185 per hour. The retainer will increase by $5,000 – from $85,000 a year to $90,000 a year. These changes will begin on Jan. 1, 2026. 

These increases will occur annually for the remainder of the contract. For example, in 2027, an additional increase of $30 will occur for hourly pay and an additional increase of $5,000 will occur for the annual retainer.