Officials looking toward the future of communities

Local leaders are looking to the future as the new year approaches.

Follansbee Mayor Tony Paesano said "We're looking for 2010 to be a great year."

Paesano said he and others will continue to seek funding for an athletic complex to serve as the new home for the city's youth baseball and football leagues and other sports.

Plans call for the complex to be built on 30 acres above the former Koppers truck terminal off Archer Hill Road that were donated to the city by Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel Corp.

The city purchased the land occupied by the two leagues' playing fields to market it to new businesses. Lee Paull Associates, a Wheeling real estate firm that bought a portion of the baseball field property, is expected in January to announce a new business that will open there.

Paesano said he and council will seek funds for an estimated $770,000 in renovations to the city building, including improvements to its electrical and heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems and measures to make it more handicap-accessible.

Paesano said independent filmmakers working on a movie inspired by Italian Christmas celebrations have assured him the project is still alive, and filming in Follansbee is expected to occur next year. Based on the novel, "The Feast of the Seven Fishes," the film has been compared by its creators to "My Big Fat Greek Wedding."

Paesano added he's looking forward to repairs slated for the Market Street Bridge next year. He and Follansbee City Council were among area officials who petitioned for the improvements when state highway officials hinted the span might not remain open for more than 10 years.

Plans call for the span to be closed from Jan. 11 through November during the project's first phase, with a second phase in 2011 to involve the bridge's painting and another closing for several months.

Wellsburg Mayor Sue Simonetti said she is looking forward to improvements to city sidewalks and curbs using $200,000 in federal economic stimulus funds and plans to seek more money to repair sidewalks that have been damaged by floods over the years and create handicap-accessible curbs.

She added a chairlift will be installed in the stairway leading to council chambers of Wellsburg City Hall, and she and other city officials will explore other ways to make the building handicap-accessible.

She said the city's water-sewer board will pursue many improvements to the city's water treatment plant, including the upcoming addition of a new cover for the reservoir and installation of new filters and other equipment.

Simonetti noted the city has been awarded a $5,000 grant for improvements to the city's Central Park, and she said she's working to secure funds to renovate the tennis courts at the Betty Carr Recreation Site and starting a tennis program there that would introduce young children to the sport.

Simonetti added she and Wellsburg City Council and the city's park and recreation committee will continue to explore ways to develop the 4th Ward Park following the closing of the city's swimming pool there a few years ago.

"That (the park) is not a dead issue by any means," she said.

Brooke County Commissioner Marty Bartz said he hopes to work with other officials to make public water and sewage available to all county residents, saying such services should be available to everyone in the 21st century.

Bartz, who also is facilities supervisor for Brooke County Schools, said he's looking forward to the completion of the county's new animal shelter and hopes to pursue improvements to the main courtroom of the county courthouse, possibly with the help of vocational students at Brooke High School.

Bartz added vocational students and professional contractors could work together on a new county ambulance station proposed for a site across from the high school. County Ambulance Director John Schwertfeger and others have been seeking funds for the building.

Bartz said it appears the commission will have to relocate the county's magistrate and family courts after learning conditions at their present location in the Progressive Bank building don't meet state fire regulations.

Brooke County Commissioner Norma Tarr said the two courts' relocations and the computerization of records handled by the county clerk's office are among projects in which the commission will be involved next year.

Tarr said she will encourage the Brooke County Public Service District to continue forward with the Mahan Lane-Eldersville Road-Bruin Drive sewer project, noting the project has been planned for several years and hundreds of homes will be served through it.

"I'd also like to see some new infrastructure and businesses come to Brooke County," she added.

In Weirton, City Manager Gary DuFour commended city leaders for completing several projects this year "that have been beneficial to the community." Upgrades to Penco Road, he noted, included paving, a new drainage system and sidewalks that make the thoroughfare "more pleasing to the eye and more accessible to pedestrians."

Other positives, DuFour said, include the Project Main Street initiative, to which Weirton City Council earmarked up to $15,000 in funding this fall. Started by Mayor Mark Harris, the project allows Main Street businesses to spruce up their appearance by repainting their exteriors, paying only the cost of labor as the city picks up the tab for paint.

He also pointed to the ongoing construction of the Village at Colliers Way retail development, the progress of a new Super Wal-Mart on Three Springs Drive expected to open in 2010 and the relative stability of conditions at ArcelorMittal over 2009 as high points of the past year.

This year also saw progress toward revitalizing the downtown area with the opening Tudor's Biscuit World. Valley Ventures Inc. also purchased the Magnone Building on Main Street, with plans to turn the decades-old structure into a commercial center, and several dilapidated houses near the west end of Pennsylvania Avenue were demolished this year in hopes of using the space to smooth out a curve in the road.

DuFour believes 2010 will be "a time of some challenge and opportunity" for Weirton. "There probably will be more impacts we're going to have to take into account as far as tax losses," he said, noting falling property values and declining population will lead to less revenue by way of property taxes, municipal service fees and police and fire service fees.

Steubenville Mayor Domenick Mucci said 2010 will bring the challenge of the city staying within its budget.

"2009 had some very difficult challenges. If we watch the budget and be conservative, and get help from three city unions, we will be able to conquer our concerns," Mucci said.

He said he believes area leaders are starting to put together the pieces needed for regionalization of services, a concept he has been pushing both as mayor and as director of the Jefferson County Regional Planning Commission.

Mucci also believes the area will turn the corner next year on economic development.

Jefferson County Commissioner Tom Gentile said 2010 will be a year when the county commissioners can start with a relatively clean slate.

He said the board this year focused of the Crestview-Belvedere sewer project, finding a new director for the county water and sewer department and another consulting engineer for the water and sewer department projects.

"With a lot of things behind us, we can look to the future in 2010. Nationally and locally, I hope we have hit the bottom of the recession. We can now start working on a new Jefferson County and where we are going," Gentile said.

Toronto Mayor John Geddis said his hopes for 2010 include moving the city forward and staying financially fit.

"Well, naturally the first thing is to stay solvent financially," said Geddis. "We also plan on doing some work on the city water lines and water mains (in 2010)."

The mayor said another big item on the city's agenda in 2010 will include the continuing project to separate the city's combined sewage and stormwater systems as ordered by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency. He also said the formation of a citywide street resurfacing program for 2010 also is a priority.

"We've already paved most of the (city) streets, but we could do some more," Geddis said. "We're also going to maintain and improve our recreational facilities."

Geddis said the city would continue to aggressively seek grant funds and "go after every dollar we can that will help the city." He noted maintaining and improving the city's business environment would also be a priority in 2010.

"We need to keep people employed," said the mayor. "Everything seems to be so much easier when (employment) is good."

In Wintersville, Mayor Bob Gale said his hopes for 2010 include improving the economy for the village and finding jobs for residents in need.

"I am hoping that more jobs will become available to village residents throughout the year," Gale said.

According to the mayor, the new Life Line Hospital on Fernwood Road will help financially.

"We are hoping the Life Line facility will, obviously, create new jobs in the area as well as boost the economy in the village of Wintersville as well as surrounding area," he said.