YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio - The city of Youngstown looks good financially at the start of the year with a $2 million carryover in its general fund.

 

The city has plans for improvements in all wards.

 

In 2022 there will also be a new Council President leading the meetings.

 

Youngstown's Finance Director explained that carry over exists even after increasing the firefighters overtime budget by about a half a million dollars, and the police departments overtime budget by around a quarter of a million dollars. Both departments had smaller number of personnel requiring call outs. But in the new year the Fire Chief  is expected to cut overtime by closing a station. 

 

Finance Director Kyle Miasek told city council members the fire chief is expected to cut down on overtime by closing stations. Miaske said if there is a station that is short, those men are now going to be moved to another station so they can have extra manning on a truck. 

 

Council will continue it's fee for homeowners and absentee landlords that don't cut grass on over 6,000 vacant lots in Youngstown, and about 1,000 occupied structures. 

 

A priority in the new year will be to tear down 800 more blighted homes and buildings over three years with American Rescue Plan dollars and possibly grants.

 

Mike Durkin, Youngstown Code Enforcement and Demolition Supervisor said, "The number is just going to vary. It depends on the structure, the size, how much asbestos is in there."

 

Members of council have been asked to review streets in their wards that need to be resurfaced in a 1.3 million dollar program that translates into about 20 lane miles. 

 

"We drive all the streets, then we assign rating numbers to them. We consider how many houses, how much traffic the street gets, then we make recommendations to city council," said Chuck Shasho, Youngstown Deputy Director of Public Works.

 

Leading the meeting as Council President will be newly-elected Tom Hetrick.  He's a familiar face and city planner who worked for about a decade for the Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corporation.

 

"I worked with neighborhood groups and block watches all around the city trying to figure out what were the major issues on whatever side of town, or whatever neighborhood it was. Working with residents to find solutions whether it was writing grants or doing community projects so I got to know a lot of people around the neighborhoods, and we created very detailed plans for how to improve different sections of Youngstown so that's my background. I'm a city planner by training. I went to Ohio State and got my masters in city planning, so that's the kind of work I enjoy doing. That's the reason I ran for this position," said Hetrick.

 

The position is largely a figure head. Council presidents don't break tie votes in Youngstown, but if needed the President of Council steps into the role of the Mayor.