Walton Hills officials outlined ambitious plans for 2026 during Monday’s infrastructure committee meeting, including a major service garage upgrade and significant equipment purchases totaling nearly $1 million.
The proposed 2026 budget includes $688,000 for service garage renovations, funded through previously received county funds. Village Engineer Joe Gigliotti said the work would modernize the facility that houses village maintenance equipment.
Street Commissioner Rob Kalman requested approval for a $300,000 chassis-mounted leafer to replace aging equipment. The specialized truck would eliminate the need for separate dump truck operations during leaf collection.
“This piece of equipment replaces one of our leafers and one of our dump trucks,” Kalman explained. The village is exploring five-year financing options with annual payments of approximately $47,784.
Committee Chair Brian Spitznagel praised both officials for bringing projects in under budget. “Joe’s bringing jobs in under budget and Rob, thank you very much for your ingenuity,” Spitznagel said.
The 2026 infrastructure plan totals nearly $600,000 in road projects, including $300,000 for asphalt maintenance, $150,000 for county route maintenance, $50,000 for crack patching and repairs, $100,000 for industrial park improvements and $25,000 for sidewalk construction.
Most projects receive partial or full reimbursement from outside funding sources including the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District and Ohio Department of Transportation.
Village officials reported successful completion of most 2025 infrastructure projects, with several major initiatives finishing under budget. The village completed $50,000 in asphalt maintenance work across various locations and finished county route maintenance projects that came in below the original bid price.
“Before fall comes, the overwhelming majority of these projects are done and out of the way, no cones, all of that stuff,” Council President Raymond Weeden said during the meeting.
Ongoing projects include video inspections on Alexander Road and sanitary sewer testing studies with 75% reimbursement from the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District. The village completed emergency road slope repairs from earlier this year, with 75% of costs covered by emergency funds and a local share of $7,500.
Council will also consider wage increases for dispatchers during its regular meeting. Ordinance 2025-11 would provide $1 per hour extra compensation for the Dispatch Terminal Agency Coordinator position and 50 cents per hour for the Assistant TAC. Dispatchers training new hires would receive an additional $1 per hour for up to 600 training hours per trainee.
The positions are appointed by the police chief with mayoral approval. Current TAC and Assistant TAC are Jenilee Mason and Heidi Hobart.
Council will also vote on Resolution 2025-36, accepting tax rates determined by the Budget Commission and authorizing necessary tax levies for 2026. The resolution confirms property tax rates of 3.0 mills for the general fund and 0.30 mills for the police pension fund.
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