Akron planning committee delays vote on 2025 capital investment budget

The Akron City Council planning committee voted unanimously to take one week before final action on a substitute resolution (listed as "0 a" in new legislation and item 4 on the regular agenda) that would adopt the city's 2025 capital investment and community development program, commonly referred to in the meeting as the capital investment budget.

The delay gives council members additional time to review updated funding-source details and project-line adjustments presented by city staff; the meeting record notes the charter requires the budget be voted on by Feb. 15, so the committee expects to ask for a final vote at the next meeting.

City staff said the document released to council Dec. 31 has been refined after departments provided clearer breakdowns of previously labeled "other" funding categories. Helen Tomic, a finance staff member who presented the update, said staff "went back and reached out to all the different departments and got received clarification" about whether funds were federal, state or from specific departments and added a small number of projects after receiving updated cost estimates.

Committee members pressed staff on several line items and funding shifts. Committee discussion and staff responses included these clarifications and adjustments:

- Kent Street bridal deck: staff said the award for the project was increased from $550,000 to $675,000, an increase of $125,000; that change allowed a corresponding decrease in the city's general obligation (G.O.) share for the project. (Explained by Helen Tomic.)

- General obligation debt: staff characterized the G.O. debt level as essentially flat compared with the previous version; the figure remains below a $12,000,000 borrowing cap used for planning. (Finance staff response in discussion.)

- Demolition budget reallocation: a previously single "demolition" line was split into commercial and residential lines for accounting purposes. Staff said the scope of work has not changed and the program remains planned to cover nearly 100 houses; the shift reflected how a state grant was allocated across the two new line items. (Clarified by staff in response to Councilmember Tina Boyse.)

- Fire apparatus: staff confirmed a $1,000,000 line in the budget coming from income tax to support a fire apparatus purchase; staff said the department was completing a bidding process to finalize timing and price. (Explained by staff.)

- Rubber City Heritage Trail, phase 2: staff said adjustments were to funding sources rather than to the total project cost. (Finance staff response.)

- Lead service line replacement: the budget now reflects a carryover of about $8.7 million from prior years and an additional $12,000,000 of 2025 funds that engineering determined were needed to complete the remaining work, giving a combined total approaching $20,000,000 for the project in 2025. Staff said the project work had already been approved but the 2025 line item had been omitted in the earlier compilation and was added during the update. (Explained by staff; referenced engineering review.)

- Firestone Park park improvements: the entry for planned investment in pickleball courts was removed after discussion with Councilman Kamer, reflecting his desire to shift the planned investment to other park improvements in his ward. (Explained by staff in response to Councilman Hanna's question about the pickleball entry.)

Committee members and staff repeatedly emphasized that many projects included in the capital budget are voted on individually even when consolidated in the capital program. After discussion, the committee's chair asked for a motion to take one week on the item; the motion was seconded and the committee voted in favor by voice vote. The chair declared, "The ayes have it." No recorded roll-call tally for the postponement was provided in the transcript.

The committee also approved minutes from the previous meeting earlier in the session by voice vote.

Next steps: staff will continue to respond to questions from council members during the coming week; the committee expects to request a final vote on the substitute resolution at the next meeting, consistent with the charter deadline mentioned in the discussion.

Ending: The planning committee adjourned after the vote and announced a rules committee meeting to follow at 2 p.m., listing committee members for that session.