Thursday, May 2, 2002
City council handled these items Wednesday:
Authorized the board of control to waive permit fees for a new tenant in the Ohio Works Industrial Park. M-T Technology plans a $4.4 million, 50,000-square-foot building. The building will house a mechanic shop and create 30 new jobs. The business focuses on metals and concrete machinery. The company hopes to start building by midyear.Appropriated $50,000 from the capital improvements fund to finish renovation of the city council chamber.Authorized the board of control to hire an architect to do a design and explore the costs of a new justice center. Also approved a resolution dedicating future capital-improvement fund money to the project.Authorized the board of control to seek bids and award contracts for 2002 street paving and testing associated with the paving project.
Approved a resolution supporting passage of the 0.5 percent sales-tax renewal for Mahoning County that is on the May 7 ballot.Heard Tom Anderson, a former member of the Western Reserve Transit Authority board, ask for support for the WRTA levy renewal on the May 7 ballot and ask council to persuade Mahoning County Commissioners to use WRTA instead of some other transportation providers. The county spends $2.3 million on transportation services other than WRTA, he said.Complained that the city administration isn't keeping council informed about budget problems. Mayor George M. McKelvey said little has changed since the 2002 budget was approved last month. Decisions on how to stem a projected $2.5 million deficit will be made after firm numbers become available, probably next week, he said.
City council's finance committee handled this item before the meeting:
Talked about the need for a new elevator in the city-owned Wick building. Rufus Hudson, D-2nd, buildings and grounds chairman, said the city must prepare to spend the $230,000 needed to replace the elevator. The state will close the old elevator, which has had problems for years, in the next three to six months unless the city replaces it, Hudson said. That expenditure needs to be kept in mind when considering how much of the city's capital improvement fund will be put toward any new municipal court building, he said.