After months of planning by all parties involved, Bridgeport financial budgets for the 2024-25 fiscal year are done and ready to move on to the next step.

 

Council approved the general fund budget (including the coal severance budget), the excess levy budget, the cemetery budget and the sale tax (The Bridge) budget during Monday’s regular meeting at City Hall.

 

The financial document are now ready to be submitted to the West Virginia State Tax Department by the March 31 deadline.

 

Every Council member congratulated Bridgeport Finance Director Sharon Hinkle for the leadership and efforts by her department and all department heads in putting together the budgets.

 

The general fund budget comes in at $21 million and the combined total of all of the city’s budgets comes in at a little less than $40 million.

 

“The city has a really good accounting system and the city has a lot of good financial history to draw on,” Mayor Andy Lang said. “That gives every department head the ability to look back five, 10 years at the numbers. Our department heads work really well together.”

 

“A big part of it (putting together the budget) is the strategic planning sessions that we have on an annual basis to see what we want moving forward. It sets the tone and the direction we want to go. It’s not an easy process but it’s a good process.

 

“It’s easy to be the mayor of Bridgeport because it’s a great city, we have great public works, great police department and all the other departments. When you total up The Bridge, the City, the Utility Board, the Cemetery, the estimated funds are $39 million. That’s money that the city is responsible for from the taxpayers to utilize and for a city of less than 10,000 people, I think that’s pretty darn good. We do a great job of managing that money, we are transparent and we spend it wisely.”

 

The budget includes a three percent cost of living pay increase and a built-in 1 percent increase on top of that. The increase should cover a hike in PEIA insurance coverage and leave the employees with money in their pockets.

 

The increases on PEIA to staff include single-courage employees going from paying $0 monthly to $25 monthly. The employee/children plan will go from $212 month to $231 month. The employee/family plan will go from $249 a month to $270 a month.

 

Also included in the budget is an increase in fees for members of The Bridge.

 

By ordinance, Council can automatically impose an increase equal to the Consumer Price Index for the year. Council opted against that last year when the CPI, according to Bridgeport Parks and Recreation Director Joe Shuttleworth, was at 13 percent.

 

This year, however, an increase is coming. The good news is that it won’t take on last year’s 13 percent.

 

Instead, members of Council agreed with a 5 percent increase for members with the exception of Silver Sneaker and the original early bird members.

 

The highest cost anyone would see would be $48 per year on monthly memberships.

 

Also on Monday, Council approved three economic incentives for three businesses that will be located in the building on West Main Street previously occupied by Rite Aid/Walgreens. – a façade improvement grant for Tarr Spatafore and business sustainability incentives for WV Stretch as well as Veltri Family Dentistry.

 

More on WV Stretch can be read HERE, more on Veltri Family Dentistry can be read HERE

 

Another item related to incentive grants was covered in the meeting during the first reading of an ordinance that would provide a partial grant award when an applicant expands the scope of quality of the applicant’s exterior improvement project based upon the availability of exterior improvement incentive grants.

 

The changes we have to this ordinance only effect façade improvement grants,” Community Development Director Andrea Kerr said. “We decided to make a couple of changes. Sometimes people were wanting to do exterior improvements to their business but they either don’t know about our program and they get a building permit prior to knowing we have such an incentive program or people decide that they want to add to their project and once you get a building permit, it’s too late.

 

“So, with these changes, this would allow people to expand the scope of their project and still receive a partial grant award through the façade improvement grant. This may be helpful to people who have already obtained a building permit, did some work to their building but then decided they want to add something.”

 

Earlier in the meeting, Lang read a proclamation declaring April as Litter Awareness Month in Bridgeport.

 

“Litter Awareness Month was something staff and council came up with to recognize that the city does a lot for the community when it comes to the street sweeper and the painting and the mowing and picking up trash.

 

“This is a way to make the community aware of what the city does and what citizens can do to help out.”

 

Lang added that April was perfect timing for Litter Awareness Month as it will lead right into the city’s annual spring cleanup event.

 

A second item under awards and presentations on the agenda was for the Bridgeport Middle School dance line being recognized for being Mid-Mountain 10 Athletic Conference champions for the second consecutive year. More photos of the dance line being honored in the upcoming days on Connect-Bridgeport.

 

Dr. Camm Lounsbury, the Executive Director of Campus Operations for Salem University spoke during the public comment portion of Monday’s meeting.

 

He informed Council that Salem is actively re-engaging with local communities and one of the partnerships they would like to build is to offer a memorandum of understanding with the city of Bridgeport in which discounted tuition would be offered to city employees, volunteers and members or dependents of employees, volunteers or members.

 

Police Chief and Interim City Manager Mark Rogers gave thanks during his City Manager report to public works for their efforts in a medical emergency involving a city employee a few weeks ago.

 

“Great work by a group of people we don’t often think of as first responders,” Rogers said. “But they absolutely acted as such on that day.”

 

One piece of unfinished business on Monday was handled with the second and final reading of amendments to the master fee schedule.

 

Father Walt Jagela from All Saints Catholic Church led Monday’s invocation which was followed by the Pledge of Allegiance.

 

Editor's Note: Top photo shows Councilman John Wilson (left) and Police Chief and Interim City Manager Mark Rogers (right), second photo is of the BMS dance line, third photo features Community Development Director Andrea Kerr (left) and Parks and Recreation Director Joe Shuttleworth (right) and bottom photo is of Mayor Andy Lang.