WELLMAN

Three of five council members turned out for Wellman’s city council meeting on Monday, April 16, at which the FY25 budget hearing was held without comment and adoption of said budget was adopted without fanfare.

In the past, Wellman has hosted the Culpepper & Merriweather Circus; however, due to concerns about how destructive that could be to North Park should the ground be wet, the city was unsure if they should approve a contract with the circus for this year.

“They do a great job, it’s just the location,” city administrator Kelly Litwiller said, noting that the event does raise some funds for the city, but is mostly held as a service to the community.

The council agreed that Litwiller should inquire if a neighboring community should like to host the circus this year.

Regarding unpaid utility accounts dating back to 2011, Litwiller acknowledged to the council that “We’ve probably collected what we’re going to,” and the council approved the city clerk write off some $9,625.37 as uncollectible.

Most of these unpaid bills were renters’ final bills that they neglected to pay, and the debtors were hard to track down as they left no forwarding addresses. The council approved higher utility deposits for renters earlier this year to avoid such write-offs in the future.

The council approved the installation of 24 water meter pits for the trailer homes in town. The $25,000 expenditure will help prevent freeze damage to water meters as well as water loss.

“Down the road we would like to see everybody in town have this capability,” mayor Ryan Miller said, which would also allow the city to maintain the meters without troubling homeowners. Future city projects are being planned which would make universal water meter pits a reality.

The term is up for a 9-month CD held by Wellman Senior Dining. The council approved withholding $50,000 from reinvestment, to be used for the dining center’s operating expenses, and the remaining $50,000 be invested in a 7-month CD with Federation Bank.

At the conclusion of the meeting, it was noted that city-wide garage sales will be held on Saturday, May 4, and city clean-up days will be May 7-9.

The Wellman City Council will next meet on Monday, May 6 at 5:30 p.m. at City Hall.