Written with the help of AI from the Trenton City Council minutes, Thursday, November 5, 2026.
Dispatch media wall and council chambers audio-visual
This recap is based on the approved minutes of the Nov. 5 City Council work session, which began at 6:30 p.m. The minutes record discussion of the items below. The only recorded votes are the procedural ones at the end of the meeting.
Why it matters: The finance director recommended that, if Council buys the $33,998.99 media wall, the cost come out of next year’s Police Department budget because it was not in this year’s budget.
Information Technology Director Lon Green presented a motion to let the City Manager sign a purchase agreement with Techkinect for a media wall in the new dispatch center, at no more than $33,998.99. The current center uses two 40-inch monitors to show camera feeds from locations including Community Park, the City building, the garage and impound lot, and the fire station. Green said the city is outgrowing that space and that the new municipal building will have significantly more cameras. The plan is a six-monitor wall with narrow bezels that can show several inputs at once, including camera feeds, weather and police vehicle video, and can enlarge one or more feeds during an incident.
Green said the wall is not strictly necessary, since standard televisions could be installed instead. Initial pricing was about $90,000, but staff worked with the vendor to remove components and bring it to just over $30,000. Finance Director Matthew Mesisklis said the purchase was not in this year’s budget. He recommended that, if Council approves it, the cost be deducted from next year’s Police Department budget, which the Public Safety Committee had already reviewed and which would have to be reduced by that amount.
Green also presented a second Techkinect change order, not to exceed $34,765.00, for audio-visual infrastructure in the new municipal building, including the new Council Chambers. He said he had earlier misread the vendor’s change order as an increase of about $4,000 when it was an additional roughly $34,000. The original quote was more than a year old, several components have since been discontinued, the scope changed, and two commercial-grade monitors were added. Green said consumer-grade televisions could lower the cost, but the vendor was concerned about connecting its equipment to them.
Magnode TIF fund advance
Mesisklis asked Council to authorize an advance of $95,842.76 from the General Fund (011) to the Magnode TIF Fund (256) for temporary cash flow, to be repaid by year-end 2027. A TIF, or tax increment financing fund, is a fund fed by property taxes from a designated area.
He said the Magnode TIF had a deficit of about $77,000. The company had paid its full property tax bill even though an agreement with the County entitled it to a 50% abatement. When the County activated the abatement, the company received a refund for prior years, which left the fund negative. The deficit grew because the city must make scheduled payments to Madison Township tied to the value of the facility after its annexation into Trenton. The city also expected a second-half property tax payment from Shape Corp., which still had a credit from the prior abatement. Mesisklis said the advance is not a permanent transfer and should be returned once Shape Corp. resumes paying property taxes next year.
Water reconnection fee ordinance, first reading
Council heard the first reading of an ordinance amending Section 1044.01 of the city’s codified ordinances on service reconnection fees. Under current practice, a customer who misses a monthly water bill gets a 10% late fee and a notice on the next bill. If the second bill goes unpaid, the account goes on the shutoff list and staff disconnect service at the curb stop. The customer must then pay the balance plus a $90 callout fee to be reconnected.
Mesisklis said that process requires frequent communication between field staff and the billing office, because some customers pay on shutoff day before service is actually cut. The amendment would assess the fee when the shutoff list is generated. It would also update the code to reflect the additional month customers already get before shutoff.
The legislation would also let the city assess a $90 civil penalty against the property for tampering with the water system, such as turning water back on after a disconnection. The penalty could end up on the property tax bill. Tampering is a criminal offense and can damage equipment or amount to theft of water. Mesisklis told Councilman Nichols that about half of the shutoff list is customers disconnected in the previous two years, and about 80% have been disconnected at some point. Council discussed whether enforcement should be consistent, for example a civil penalty for a first offense and criminal charges for later ones.
Trenton Square New Community Authority
City Attorney Nick Ziepfel presented the second reading of an ordinance establishing the Trenton Square Community Authority, defining the district boundary, setting the number and selection of trustees, and declaring an emergency. He said Council had delayed final action because state law requires trustees to be appointed within 10 days of the authority’s creation.
The proposed citizen trustees are Jeff Judd, Thomas Keane and Jennifer Combs, with the city’s Finance Director as the local government representative. Some would serve initial one-year terms and others two-year terms to stagger the cycle. Ziepfel said appointment motions would follow immediately if Council approved the authority that evening, and that an orientation was tentatively planned for the following week. The minutes do not record a vote on the ordinance or the appointments.
Public works office addition and planning commission vacancy
Service Director Brad Baker presented a motion for an agreement with McGill, Smith, Punshon (referred to in the minutes as MS Architects and Engineering) for design services, not to exceed $45,250, for added office space at the fleet maintenance garage on Woodsdale Road. The project would create three offices and a conference room. Baker said three mechanics and the Assistant Service Director share one office in the mechanic shop, and staff sometimes leave the building or use vehicles to join remote meetings. The firm previously completed the buildings and needs assessment and the truck garage at the Public Works facility on South Miami Street.
Clerk of Council Stanislav Beresford said Planning Commission member Bishop resigned because of a change in his work schedule. If Council accepts the resignation, the city would advertise the vacancy starting the following week and keep the posting open for about a month.
City Manager’s project updates
City Manager Marcos Nichols reported that at the new municipal building at Trenton Square, insulation and drywall are underway, the pool has been poured and is being backfilled, and floor polishing is taking place in the lobby and hallways. The collector road project is on schedule, with cleaning before paving to start the next day. Temporary traffic signals at State Street and Edgewood Drive are active until permanent ones are installed. Steel work on the elevated water tower is scheduled to finish Nov. 18, followed by painting. Survey work for the missing sidewalk on Hamilton Trenton Road is expected to start soon.
On the previously tabled EV charging station project, staff recommended that Council remove it from consideration and deny the current proposal, so the city can pursue relocating the chargers and submit a new application. The Safe Haven Baby Box has arrived and the contractor has a purchase order. In the 2026 local paving program, John Street and Brelsford are paved, Greenwood is being paved and alleys will follow. Nine water service replacements remain on the waterline project before paving can begin. The building at 301 State Street has been removed and the parking lot is being taken out. Signal timing equipment is installed at the South First Street and Miami Street intersections, and the system needs one to two weeks to learn traffic patterns. Staff has also met with MSP about a proposed live fire training prop, with construction documents expected soon.
Public comment
The minutes record no public comment at this work session.
Routine items and votes
Council voted 7-0 at 6:53 p.m. to move into executive session. The stated purpose was to consider confidential information related to a request for economic development assistance and related infrastructure, and to confer with legal counsel; the agenda listed AWS and Townships. At 7:28 p.m. Council voted 7-0 to end the executive session and adjourn. Voting yes both times were Perry, Croucher, Montgomery, Nichols, Proffitt, Roark and Butts, with no nays, abstentions or absences.
Source: Trenton City Council minutes, Thursday, November 5, 2026.
By the numbers: Jobs in Montgomery County paid an average of $1,279 a week in Q1 2026 (BLS QCEW). Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages. See the data.
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