MOVING FORWARD — During Monday’s Weirton Council meeting, a resolution was passed to place a supplemental levy to support city parks on the Weirton November election ballot. Officials said there is still some work to be done to finalize the levy documents. Pictured are 4th Ward Councilman George Ash, left, who sponsored the resolution, and 7th Ward Councilman Terry Weigel. – Craig Howell
WEIRTON – The Weirton City Council unanimously passed a resolution Monday authorizing the Weirton Board of Parks and Recreation to place an overage levy on the city’s November ballot, but not without some questions.
The resolution was sponsored by Fourth Ward Councillor George Ash and states: “If approved, an additional levy will be imposed on the citizens of the City, beginning in the 2025/2026 fiscal year, to benefit parks, green spaces and other recreational facilities or services in the City, in the form of an increase in property taxes.”
Terry Weigel, councilman for the 7th District, pointed out, however, that the resolution’s wording did not include any amount that could be raised through the levy.
Park Director Coty Shingle explained that there are several steps needed to finalize such a levy, and that council’s adoption of the resolution is one of those steps.
“We need about $10 million,” Shingle said, explaining that City Attorney Vince Gurrera can present the approved resolution to Hancock County Tax Assessor Joe Alongi, who will help set tax rates for Hancock County residents.
When asked about progress in Brooke County, Shingle said there have been some difficulties with officials there.
According to Shingle, a person he spoke with at the Brooke County elections office told him he would have to contact the West Virginia Auditor’s Office to get that county’s tax rates. Without those numbers, the tax cannot go on the ballot in November.
Gurrera said he would take the documents to Alongi and they would contact Brooke County again.
“If she says no, I have to call the auditor,” Gurrera said.
Hancock County Commissioner Eron Chek, who sat in the gallery during Monday’s meeting, said it typically takes the state auditor only two days to determine Hancock County’s levy rates.
Weirton Parks officials have spent the past few months compiling a list of projects that could potentially be funded by such a levy. They include much of a multi-phase improvement project at Marland Heights Park, repairs to the roof of the Millsop Community Center, upgrading the center’s heating and cooling systems, upgrading security systems at the parks, ongoing maintenance of the Panhandle Recreational Trail and more.
