MOUNT VERNON — The city of Mount Vernon is in the midst of working on budgets for 2009, according to Mount Vernon Mayor Richard Mavis.
Mavis, Safety-Service Director Dave Glass and City Auditor Terry Scott are in the middle of two weeks of meeting with department heads about their budgets for the upcoming year.
“We’ve asked them their wish list, talked about the number of employees, equipment, uniforms, supplies, etc.,” said Mavis. “Next, we’ll go through that and try to provide them with enough to run an efficient department.
“The meetings can take up a lot of time, but it’s an opportunity for us to catch up on department plans. I find [the meetings] very informative.”
Mavis also reported the contracts with the three unions that serve city employees are up this year, so negotiations will soon begin with them. The fire and police departments have separate unions; the other city employees are under the third union.
Mavis hopes to have an interim budget ready to be voted on late in the year. The city uses an interim budget to pay for things in January and February, then sets a formal budget to take over the rest of the year.
In other news:
•The bow string truss bridge near Bladensburg is expected to be moved on Sunday. The city received the permits from the Ohio Department of Transportation, and Dingey House Movers Inc. will move the bridge beginning at 9 a.m. The movers will travel down Jug Run Road to Ohio 541, then to Martinsburg, where they will hit Ohio 586 and travel north to Mount Vernon. They will then turn left on Parrott Street, then right on Columbus Road to Norton Street, then to Foundation Park. The bridge will be placed next to the city building in the park, where it can be refurbished and repainted this winter.
•Leaf pickup has begun in the city. Residents are reminded to rake the leaves to the curb, where they can be picked up by city workers. Once completely through all the streets, city workers will take a second trip down many of the streets to pick up late-falling leaves. Mavis said he hopes the pickup will be completed by Thanksgiving.
•There have been some complaints that the city’s new digital cameras on North Main Street are not picking up waiting traffic on Hamtramck and Pleasant streets. Mavis said the city has checked it out and believes the cameras are operating properly. He said they are still working on timing issues and some other glitches with the system.
•Two projects are entering the final phases in the city. Workers are expected, weather permitting, to begin laying the base asphalt on Blackjack Road on Monday. Also, the concrete is being poured on the road bed at Curtis Street. Once the concrete cures, the city can put sand and bricks back in the street.
•The city awarded bid contracts on the culvert replacement at East Pleasant Street and Curtis Run. UPI will make the new concrete box culvert, while Glenn Baker of Shreve will do the construction work. The approximately $130,000 project will allow a better water flow from Curtis Run, and is expected to be completed by the end of the year.
•Mavis met with Tim Wells of AEP about the company’s proposed three-year plan. AEP has submitted a three-year plan to PUCO that includes rate hikes of up to 15 percent, due primarily to fuel costs for the company. Wells has been talking with elected officials about the proposal.
