Mayor Harold Miller addresses those attending Monday’s meeting of Weirton Council, following the conclusion of business. Monday marked the final regular meeting of Miller’s time as mayor. Also pictured is City Attorney Vince Gurrera. -- Craig Howell

WEIRTON — In what is set to be the final regular meeting of the current Weirton Council, a resolution providing additional funds toward a series of projects to benefit the city’s recreation system was approved, though not without some discussion.

Council voted 5-1 on a resolution to allocate $350,000 toward the completion of the first phase of improvements at Marland Heights Park, to include a planned restroom facility, upgrades and improvements to the Brookline Street playground, and any other recreation projects.

Earlier in the meeting, council went into an executive session for 40 minutes, with City Attorney Vince Gurrera explaining it was to discuss the plans for improvement projects involving the city’s park system.

An amendment to the resolution also was passed, requiring all invoices for the project to be subject to the approval of council.

Ward 3 Councilman Fred Marsh was the lone vote against the resolution, though his comments indicated he wasn’t necessarily against the project goals.

“I don’t think we should burden the next council,” he said, noting the decision will have to be fulfilled by the new city administration which is scheduled to take over Jan. 1.

Marsh stated his preference would be for the new city council to assess the planned projects and allow them to make a decision of funding to fulfill them.

Ward 5 Councilwoman Flora Perrone, who sponsored the resolution, noted, though, the projects at Marland Heights Park had been started under the current administration, and she would like to see it have the funding needed before they leave office at the end of the year.

“We started this project and didn’t properly fund it from the beginning,” she said.

In May, Weirton Council allocated $150,000 toward the construction of a new restroom facility at Marland Heights Park, with an additional $50,000 to be put toward various infrastructural improvements at the park.

According to officials, bids submitted for the project surpassed $500,000, with the restroom facility on itself set to cost approximately $242,000.

Ward 4 Councilman George Ash was not in attendance Monday.

During the departmental reports portion of the meeting, Parks Executive Director Coty Shingle thanked council for approving the funds.

“We’ll do the best we can to make the dollars go as far as we can and give a quality project,” Shingle said.

City Manager Mike Adams also offered his appreciation, noting the importance of investing in recreation.

“As we’ve talked, parks is a primary amenity people come to town looking for,” Adams said.

Members of the Weirton Board of Parks and Recreation have been discussing various improvements to the parks system for more than a year, with a major focus on Marland Heights Park, especially following the December 2022 demolition of the Margaret Manson Weir Memorial Pool.

The restroom facility is part of what had been designated at the first of at least three phases of improvements for the park.