Weirton Council continues budget discussions
WEIRTON -- Weirton Council continued its work crafting a budget for the 2024-25 fiscal year, meeting in the second of a series of work sessions Wednesday.
Estimates for the fiscal year budget, which begins July 1, features a budget of $25,192,094, which includes $21,692.094 in operating revenue and $3,500,000 in a fund balance carried over from the current fiscal year.
Wednesday's work session focused on areas of public safety, such as the Weirton Police Department and Weirton Fire Department, the Planning and Inspections departments, and the new city Transit Department which will be overseeing municipal bus operations as part of the ongoing dissolution of the Weirton Transit Corp.
As part of the transit transition, Finance Director Diana Smoljanovich explained she has been in communication with the state Auditor's Office about how to track finances for the bus service once it is fully under the city's auspices.
"They want us to put up a new fund," she said, explaining it would still be monitored by the city's Finance Department, but be a standalone budget from the general fund, similar to how the city has a separate budget for Community Development Block Grant funding.
A resolution to create the fund will be presented to city council at a later time.
Kevin Davis, the city transit director, and Dan Wagner, a consultant being provided by the West Virginia Department of Transportation to assist with the transition, explained they have been working on completing new policies and procedures for the Transit Department, as well as a timeline to finalize the process.
The Weirton Transit Corp. Board of Trustees also met Wednesday for an update on the dissolution process.
Also discussed was a proposal to hire six new firefighters, with a goal of providing improved fire coverage for the city's north end and reduce overtime costs, although councilmembers felt it wouldn't be financially feasible at this time.
"I don't see where we can right now," said Ward 6 Councilman Enzo Fracasso.
Of particular interest for the additional manpower would be having firefighters assigned to the County Road Station, with Fire Chief Kevin Himmelrick pointing to new development opportunities - such as Form Energy - taking place, as well as improved protection for the Harris Hills and Weircrest areas.
Smoljanovich said she has estimated it could cost anywhere from $495,000 and $678,000 to hire the six firefighters, including salaries and benefits.
Council did agree to the creation of a Capital Improvement Account for the budget, as a way to have a dedicated fund to assist with improvement projects at municipal facilities.
A third work session is being scheduled for 5:30 p.m., Monday in the council chambers of the Weirton Municipal Building, with a primary focus on requests from the Weirton Board of Parks and Recreation, the Mary H. Weir Public Library and proposals for civic contributions.