Council authorizes HAPCAP to administer transit and approves small appropriation for fourth-quarter payment

Athens City Council on Monday authorized the mayor to redesignate HAPCAP (Hocking Athens Perry Community Action Program) to administer the city’s public transit system and read a related appropriation ordinance for one quarterly payment.

Member Spialles introduced Ordinance 1-31-25, saying the redesignation provides a Memorandum of Understanding for HAPCAP to assume procurement and administration duties and to ease the city’s operational responsibilities. The ordinance passed by voice vote.

Council also heard a first reading of Ordinance 1-41-25 to appropriate $8,076 from the unappropriated balance to the transportation fund for the fourth-quarter payment to HAPCAP. Member Thomas relayed a request from the auditor’s office that suspension and passage would ease payment processing, but the mover said he did not intend to suspend rules.

Councilors and a public commenter discussed weekend transit service and funding. A council member recounted that a transit representative previously estimated adding Saturday service at roughly $10,000 per Saturday (about $500,000 annually for a full year of Saturday service); the commenter Rob Delich noted that county-level sales-tax referenda are a common avenue to raise substantial transit revenue.

Council approved the administrative MOU to allow HAPCAP to run the system and directed administration to follow up on operational details and funding requests.