Charleston City Council's Finance Committee voted Monday to authorize a grant application for more than $1.1 million for the city to pursue its bicycle master plan.
The Transportation Alternatives Grant, awarded by the West Virginia Department of Transportation Division of Highways, would help fund a bike trail project from Quarrier Street to Virginia Street West. The city would provide a 20-percent match as well as in-kind services for the project, for a total of $237,000.
Sherry Risk, executive projects administrator for the City Manager's office, said the two-way bicycle track would run along Quarrier Street from its intersection with Capitol Street and head west toward Tennessee Avenue before connecting with Virginia Street.
"We may not get all this money, but this is an ongoing effort to start implementing our bicycle master plan," City Manager David Molgaard said.
The city still is awaiting approval from the Division of Highways for the bike lane project on Kanawha Boulevard, which would construct a bike lane from the boulevard's intersection with Patrick Street to Magic Island.
"We're hoping to get their permission by the end of the month, so we don't miss that construction season," Molgaard said.
Also on Monday, Finance Committee also approved an agreement with Harris Brothers Roofing and Sheet Metal Company for more than $237,000 to replace the roof at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Center on Donnally Street.
The roof at that facility and the North Charleston Community Center are at the center of a lawsuit the city filed against Ohio Valley Spray Foam Inc. in Kanawha Valley Circuit Court. The city alleges the company is responsible for water damage at those centers due to insufficient application of the spray foam and violations of industry standards. The case was moved to U.S. District Court in November and is pending.
Finance Committee also looked at the proposed draft of the city's fiscal 2017 budget on Monday.
Molgaard and Finance Director Joe Estep reported that the city is expecting a six-percent jump, or about $5.6 million, in revenue during fiscal 2017. The city is expecting a $1.9 million surplus, with roughly $94 million in total revenue and $92.5 million in total expenditures.
"The department heads have done a really effective job of being efficient and working with what they have," Molgaard said.
The draft currently has no pay increases or position changes, Molgaard said, pending the completion of a compensation initiative study that is underway. The recommendations from that study should be available before July 1, when the FY 2017 budget goes into effect.
Finance Committee will make a motion on the budget at 6 p.m. March 14. City Council will vote on the budget at 6 p.m. March 22.
A bill was introduced Monday that would allow blade signs outside businesses in the central business district and urban corridor district, or downtown and the Elk City area, respectively.
Introduced by Councilwoman Mary Jean Davis, the bill would permit signs to be mounted on a building facade oriented primarily for pedestrians and not exceed three feet in width or two feet in height. The bill was referred to Council's planning committee and the Municipal Planning Commission.
Reach Elaina Sauber at elaina.sauber@wvgazettemail.com, 304-348-3051 or follow @ElainaSauber on Twitter.