MORGANTOWN — When the issue of a new contract for City Manager Kim Haws was taken up by Morgantown City Council on Dec. 20, the body opted to take no action after members expressed frustration with a general lack of communication within council about what was in the document.
The contract was back before council on Tuesday. This time the matter was taken up and passed unanimously with no discussion in under a minute.
Comparing the contract presented on Dec. 20 to the one passed on Tuesday, there are some differences.
For example, the annual salary approved by council on Tuesday is $154,500. That’s up from the $150,000 listed in the Dec. 20 version.
In addition, the monthly vehicle allowance is up from $500 to $600 monthly.
These increases are offset by the removal of 10 paid vacation days.
In the Dec. 20 version, the manager started with 80 hours of paid vacation time (10 days) and accrued paid time off at a rate of 9.25 hours per pay period. The contract approved Tuesday only includes the 9.25-hour accrual rate.
While none of these changes were discussed during Tuesday’s meeting, they’re noteworthy in that during the initial presentation of the contract, Deputy Mayor Danielle Trumble pointed out that council was being asked to provide increased paid time off for the city manager while the city’s firefighters are in the middle of a civil service case, claiming the new personnel rules implemented by the city reduces their overall time off and constitutes an illegal reduction in pay.
Haws was hired by Morgantown City Council in November 2020.
In other news from Tuesday’s meeting, Haws explained that city staff is working with the Port Authority of Pittsburgh (Pittsburgh Regional Transit) on co-applications designating the Monongahela and Allegheny rivers as “Maritime Highways.”
“This is a designation that will open up the area for economic development around and back on the river. At this time there are no grants which we can apply for until the U.S. Secretary of Transportation gives us that designation,” Haws said. “Working with Pittsburgh and joining forces really carries a lot of weight and I think it has the potential to be a pretty significant impact for us.”
Lastly, City Clerk Christine Wade updated the list of individuals to file certificates of announcement for the April municipal election involving the 1st, 3rd, 5th and 7th Ward seats.
So far, incumbent Joe Abu-Ghannam and James Giuliani have filed in the 1st Ward. Louise Michael has filed in the 3rd Ward. Trumble has filed for reelection in the 5th Ward and Ben Mayle has filed in the 7th Ward. Seventh Ward incumbent Brian Butcher said he intends to file in the coming days.
Ixya Vega, the current 3rd Ward representative, is not seeking reelection.
Certificates of announcement for council candidates must be filed with the clerk’s office by Feb. 13.
For more election information check out the “city clerk” link at morgantownwv.gov or contact Wade’s office at 304-284-7439.
