Parkersburg City Council to pick president, VP Tuesday

URA will consider donation of downtown building

PARKERSBURG -- Parkersburg City Councilman Mike Reynolds has his eye on the council presidency for 2024, while current President Sharon Kuhl is interested in being vice president.

Reynolds and Kuhl were the only candidates mentioned by members contacted Thursday about the votes for the two leadership positions scheduled to take place at Tuesday's meeting, council's last of 2023.

It will be followed by a special meeting of the Urban Renewal Authority to consider the proposed donation of a building in the 700 block of Market Street.

Reynolds has been a member of council since 2004 and served three times as council president.

"If I've got anybody that nominates me ... I'll be more than glad to do it," he said.

Reynolds said he believes communicating with fellow council members is one of his strengths. If elected by his peers, he said he would like to start welcoming people a few minutes prior to the start of meetings and reminding them how to sign up to speak in the public forum.

Councilmen Bob Mercer, J.R. Carpenter, Chris Rexroad and Zach Stanley all indicated they plan to support Reynolds for the presidency.

"Mike has the knowledge and the experience. He does a great job," Mercer said.

Kuhl said she enjoyed her first go-round as the president, who runs the meetings and makes committee appointments, but believes the job should rotate among qualified council members. She said she emailed other members to express her interest in serving as vice president, who runs meetings in the president's absence and oversees the annual budget hearings.

Rexroad, this year's vice president, said he's not seeking the post again and will support Kuhl.

"I think Sharon's done a pretty good job as president," he said.

Council will be back up to nine members Tuesday, with Dr. Cathy Dailey, recently appointed to the District 9 seat by Mayor Tom Joyce, set to be sworn in prior to the meeting.

Also on the council agenda is a resolution moving more than $10.1 million that had been dedicated to Memorial Bridge maintenance and eventual demolition to a newly created debt reserve fund the mayor has said could be used to help finance future capital projects.

A second resolution would apply to the Wood County Commission for permission to annex nearly 11.6 acres along West Virginia 14 just across Bosley Industrial Park Drive from the south Parkersburg Walmart. A representative of RCDI, which owns the property and requested the annexation, told the city's Municipal Planning Commission last month that a service station is planned for the site, along with other retail development.

Kuhl announced after the last council meeting that there would not be a URA session on Dec. 19, but the city has received an application from owner C&S Limited Liability Co. to donate 714 Market St. A special meeting is planned after the council session to consider that application.

The property includes a three-story building with an appraised value of $495,000 in 2019.

A representative of C&S could not immediately be reached for comment.

Evan Bevins can be reached at ebevins@newsandsentinel.com.