Bridgeport City Council voted unanimously Monday night to approve the first reading of an ordinance authorizing the purchase of two properties located on lower Worthington Drive.

 

“This is part of a plan to expand park opportunities,” said City Manager Kim Haws. “These properties are adjacent to existing park property including the pool, Civic Center and tennis courts, as well as basketball courts in the middle of downtown. Staff recommended that we consider it.”

 

The lots were identified as 116 and 124 Worthington Drive. The purchase will be financed, said Finance Director Monica Musgrave, with $200,000 of the city’s hotel/motel tax revenue which has been set aside in a capital reserve fund, which has to be used for park development.

 

A budget revision was thereafter approved to transfer $160,600 – the appraised value of the properties – plus $30,000, the estimated cost to demolish the homes on those properties, and a $9,400 contingency.

 

Also approved at the meeting was the first reading of an ordinance authorizing the purchase of 5.50 acres along Route 131. Purchase of that property has been a subject of discussion for the past couple of years.

 

“This project is one we worked on extensively the entire time I served on the Benedum Airport Authority,” said Council member and former mayor, Bob Greer. “This is an opportunity to acquire property that gives the community a lot of flexibility and addresses an eyesore that has been allowed to exist there on Route 131 across from the entrance to Bridgeport Recreation Complex.”

 

The property purchase also addresses a shortage of property/facilities to be used for storage purposes, Greer said.

 

That purchase will be funded by transferring $250,000 from capital reserves; derived through the North Central West Virginia revenue guarantee. That transfer was included in the same budget revision which also passed by unanimous vote.

 

In other matters of new business, Council Member Lowell Maxey was appointed to the Bridgeport Senior Citizens Board of Directors. Mayor Andy Lang said he had received a request for a member of Council to serve on the board and upon sharing that request with members of the city's governing body, Maxey expressed interest.

 

“I look forward to hearing the needs of our senior citizens and you can rest assured that their concerns will be reported back to Council,” Maxey said.

The only other matter brought before Council for vote was the first reading of an ordinance to approve and adopt current replacement pages to the codified ordinances.

 

“The city passes a number of ordinances each year and they need to be incorporated into the city ordinance book,” Haws said. “We hire a consultant every year to incorporate those ordinances, including state statues affecting the city, into that book so it is updated.”

 

City Clerk Andrea Kerr said the ordinances are also updated on the city’s Web site. That service is included in the work performed by the consultant, the Walter H. Drane Company.

 

Two individuals spoke out during the public comment portion of Monday night’s meeting. Robert Marra shared an email he had previously written to Council and members of the city’s parks and recreation staff expressing appreciation for the Recreation Complex and exemplary upkeep of baseball fields. Marra is general manager of the local American Legion baseball program, which hosted the state tournament July 25-30 at the recreation complex. During the latter days of the tournament, much rain fell in the immediate area, but the tournament stayed in play.

 

“We had six teams representing all areas of the state who were amazed that the fields were in such good condition,” he said. “That speaks well of the fields, as well as the dedication of the city and (parks and recreation) staff in the upkeep of  those fields.”

 

People from all over the state were complimentary of the city and the facility, Marra said. As long as teams are happy with their experiences, they are likely to return to the facility for tournaments and that translates to economic impact to the city, he said. Marra urged City Council to keep that in mind when planning for the proposed new indoor recreational facility.

 

“The economic impact from that facility could be off the charts,” he said. “I implore that the city continues to do the right thing.”

 

Marra also thanked the Greater Bridgeport Convention and Visitors Bureau for its financial support of the tournament and presented Council with a banner, asking it be sent to the CVB.

 

Also addressing Council was Donna Hergenrether, a resident of Broadway Avenue. Her concern was the abundance of fireworks that were let off by residents not only on the Fourth of July, but also in the weeks leading up to and following the holiday. A U.S. Air Force veteran and officer of Clarksburg VFW, Hergenrether is a victim of post traumatic stress disorder. Not only was she severely affected by the ongoing fireworks, but her dog – terrified of the fireworks - did substantial damage to the family’s home. Hergenrether said she knows of others, including neighbors, who also were adversely affected by the nonstop fireworks. She said she realizes that fireworks are a part of the Independence Day celebration and she is not asking for them to be banned, but rather confined to a window of dates and times.

There had been a city ordinance in place, but the state – making fireworks legal for residents – superseded that ordinance, Haws said.

 

“I assume we can draft an ordinance more stringent than the state law,” he said.

 

City Attorney Dean Ramsey said Morgantown has such an ordinance and he will follow up by investigating.

 

Monday's meeting was opened with prayer by Nathaniel Lutyens of Young Life.

 

Also Monday night: