The Village Administrator operates under the Council-Manager form of government.
The Village Administrator is appointed by the Mayor and approved Council. The Village Administrator must be experienced in business management, personnel management, human resources management, versed in labor law, purchasing and have municipal based knowledge and experience in public works and municipal infrastructure. The Administrator must have a fundamental knowledge in Ohio Revised Code and how it relates to municipal operation and provides checks-and-balance accountability to the public.
As the municipal manager, the Administrator is responsible for the everyday oversight and administration of all Village business. The position of Village Administrator is in part defined in the Village of Grafton codified ordinance;
232.02 POWERS AND DUTIES.
The Village Administrator shall have those powers, duties and functions as are provided for by the general laws of the State and by the Charter and ordinances of the Village. In addition, he or she shall have the following powers, duties and functions:
(a) The Village Administrator is hereby designated as the Purchasing Agent for all Village offices, departments, divisions, boards and commissions, and he or she shall make all contracts, purchase supplies or materials and provide for any work of the Village in the manner provided by the Ohio Revised Code and/or the Charter and ordinances of the Village.
(b) The Village Administrator is hereby authorized to promulgate such written rules and procedures to be followed by all Village employees and officer’s relative to the requisition of supplies, materials and work for their respective offices, departments, divisions, boards or commissions as he or she may, in his or her discretion, deem to be necessary or desirable. Such rules and procedures shall not conflict with the Charter or ordinances of the Village.
(Ord. 741. Passed 8-15-67.)
Joe Price serves as Village Administrator for the Village of Grafton since 2015. Joe brings to the office of Administrator a unique balance of experience through both public and private sector business administration management with notable success in business development, expansion and retention spanning 4-decades in Northeast Ohio. Additionally, his experience includes 14-years in governmental oversight management. The office of the Village Administrator is one that encompasses multiple business disciplines involving local municipal government management. Joe’s experience and knowledge broadens the Administrator’s oversight to include Director of Public Works and Director of Public Utilities including Electric Generation & Distribution, Wastewater Treatment and Water Distribution. By Charter VA Price serves as project manager over all street and roadway construction projects, annual streets maintenance program, parks maintenance and purchasing agent for the Village of Grafton.
Representing Grafton’s position regionally, VA Price regularly attends both the Northeast Ohio Mayors and Managers Association and Lorain County Mayors and Managers Association, works directly with Grafton’s Local Planning Agency (LPA) NOACA in matters governing Grafton’s 208 Sewer District and various project funding opportunities, Ohio Department of Transportation certified to manage local lent state highway projects funded in part or whole by ODOT and represents Grafton’s position with Lorain County agencies.
Grafton Village Power & Light is a Public Power utility serving the Village since 1930 and is an active member of the AMERICAN MUNICIPAL POWER (AMP) organization where he is currently serving his second elected term of the AMP Board of Trustees. The AMP organization represents and serves 133 communities in 9-states. VA Price represents GRAFTON as the Board Trustee where he serves as Vice Chairman of the AMP Power Transmission Committee and Vice Chairman of the AMP Membership Committee. Joe also serves on the Legislative, Finance, Solar, Prairie State, and AFEC Committees.
The Village of Grafton is one of only two Ohio village-communities that is mandated to comply with collective bargaining in full compliance of SERB (State Employee Relations Board), as determined by Federal Census. VA Price serves as Grafton’s Chief negotiator involving all collective bargaining contracts the Village currently has with the IBEW and OPBA.
VA Price leads the Grafton Economic Development Team and is a current member of the OEDA (Ohio Economic Development Association). In 2019 Joe was an invited presenter at the OEDA annual summit to share the success of Project Beacon and Grafton’s future development of more than 800 acres of municipal-owned land. Project Beacon layered with opportunities include Grafton Beacon Solar site located on 35 acres within Grafton Village and generating 4MW of renewable energy benefiting the Village customers with low-cost clean energy. The next phase of Project Beacon proposed a 250-acre renewable energy industrial park and future expansion of Grafton’s solar footprint and generation capacity. All this showcasing GRAFTON’s forward thinking as OHIO’s Capital for Renewable Energy.
Village Administrator – Andrew C.G. Lipian
