Andy Cook received the 12th Man Award. (Photo by Jarrett Van Meter)

In a meeting that lasted only 17 minutes, Etna Green Town Council President Andy Cook received the 12th Man Award from Triton Junior Football Chairman Jeff Hoffman. Hoffman said that he originally created the award to honor members of the community who contribute greatly to the league’s efforts.

Hoffman expressed his gratitude to the members of the community who have helped him get the league going, and stated, “I recently realized that it takes a lot more people to run the league than I originally expected.”

The meeting also saw a unanimous vote to pass ordinance 2014-12, which is a re-wording of the town’s water ordinance. Those living outside of city limits will now be billed the same as those households within city limits.  Due to the wording of the previous water ordinance, households outside of Etna Green proper were not having to pay as much for the same service received by those living within the town.

Etna Green residents Chris and Danyelle Irwin spoke to the council about increased water bills at their home. Chris stated that he had been billed for using 10,000 gallons of water. He then stated that he did not know why the bill was so high for he and his family did not use an excessive amount of water.

Council members expressed that sometimes leaks and breaks can occur, wasting water without anyone knowing. Cook stated, “It had to be something that was leaking somewhere to go through that much water. I don’t know if you had a toilet that was sticking or what.”

Council Vice President Keith Claassen added, “My water bill was up a little bit one month, so I checked around and couldn’t find anything but I looked at the toilet upstairs and realized the water was flowing the wrong way back down the pipes.” They suggested that Irwin check and make sure there wasn’t a leak in an unexpected place.

Town Clerk Laura Baker stated that they needed someone to come in and check out the dry wall at the entrance of the town hall because wind had blown water inside and the water was damaging it. She suggested hiring someone to fix it, but Council Member Todd Slabaugh stepped in and offered to do it himself.

Cook announced that he had made a consulting agreement with Commonwealth Engineering. The agreement will allow Commonwealth Engineering to assist with any changes and modifications implemented by Winona Powder. The agreement is for services totaling up to $10,000.

A year end meeting was scheduled for 11 a.m. Monday, Dec. 29.