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Marion Council receives clean audit, adopts budget calendar and accepts $2.49M in Helene recovery grants
Summary
The City Council received a clean FY2024-25 audit, unanimously adopted the FY2026-27 budget calendar, and accepted two Helene Local Government Capital Grants totaling about $2,487,500 to repair sewer infrastructure damaged by Hurricane Helene.
The Marion City Council on Jan. 6 received an unmodified (clean) audit for fiscal year 2024-25, unanimously adopted the FY2026-27 budget calendar and accepted two Hurricane Helene recovery grants totaling approximately $2,487,500.
City Auditor Sharon Gillespie told the council the audit returned an unmodified opinion across financial statements and grant compliance with no material weaknesses or significant deficiencies. Gillespie credited Finance Director Crystal Young and staff for maintaining strong records while managing FEMA-related activity; Gillespie also noted the City ABC system showed an annual profit of about $320,000.
Finance Director Crystal Young presented the proposed budget calendar, which sets department request due dates for March 9, manager recommendations in May and public hearings and adoption in June. Council Member Ann Harkey moved to approve the calendar; Council Member Juanita Doggett seconded the motion, which passed unanimously.
Funding Coordinator Hunter Clark reported the city received two Helene Local Government Capital Grant awards of $1,243,750 each—about $2,487,500 total. Clark said one award will fund burial of a sewer crossing of the Catawba River destroyed during Hurricane Helene, protecting service to an industrial customer and capacity for future expansion; the other will fund headworks repairs and improvements at the Wastewater Treatment Plant damaged in the storm. Clark said the grants cover roughly half of the sewer crossing project and that staff will pursue additional funding to complete work.
City Manager Woody Ayers updated the council on related financial metrics: FEMA reimbursements on the books total slightly over $1.8 million, retail sales in McDowell County through October were about $56.5 million (a roughly 17.6% increase from the prior year), and water and sewer billings for the first six months of the fiscal year rose about 14.2% compared with the prior year.
Council directed staff to proceed with project planning and to use the grant funds as leverage where appropriate for larger federal grants; no additional appropriations were approved at the meeting beyond accepting the awards and maintaining routine budget calendar milestones. The City Manager’s recommended budget will be produced for Council review in May under the adopted calendar.
