ASHLAND — Ashland City Council unanimously approved the city’s 2022 spending plan during Tuesday’s meeting.
The $71.7 million in appropriations reflects an accumulation of all the city’s funds, including its general fund, capital improvements, police, fire, sanitation and debt services.
Finance Director Larry Paxton said the city budgeted $5.8 million for construction projects in 2022, including the reconstruction of Claremont Avenue between Baney and Smith roads, renovating the hydropillar at Baney Road, giving upgrades to the police and fire stations and several others.
Another highlight included paying off a chunk of debt totaling $1.8 million from the city’s water plant, which would retire the debt of the facility, Paxton said.
“(Retiring that debt) is several years in advance of what it could have been,” he said.
The city was able to refinance the debt and secure a lower interest rate. The payoff does not mean the water plant will be debt free, Paxton said, because federal regulations and mandates are always inevitable.
The city’s 243 employees, non-union and some union, are eligible to receive up to 4% wage increases, which resulted in a bump to the city’s overall budget. Mayor Matt Miller said the city also saw higher health insurance costs this year.
“We’re working hard behind-the-scenes to try and get that under control with the help of outside experts,” Miller said.
This year’s spending plan, although slightly higher than last, is “pretty much right in line with what we’ve been doing,” the mayor noted.
Councilman Dan Lawson praised the city’s fiscal management, and mentioned last year’s roads that did not get paved would likely get completed this year.
Council president Steve Workman echoed Lawson’s praise and mentioned an article that highlighted the city’s placement on a shortlist of Ohio’s Top 10 economically strongest micropolitans.
Ashland placed ninth in the state and 153rd in the nation when it comes to its economic prowess compared to other smaller cities, according to POLICOM, an urban economic analyst group.
“Pretty impressive in my book,” Workman said, thanking Paxton. “That’s something we can be proud of.”
