Fostoria council OKs tax budget

FOSTORIA — Fostoria's City Council on Tuesday night approved a tax budget for 2026 that projects the city to emerge on the plus side of funding by about $10.8 million.A tax budget is a state-mandated plan that outlines how a local government plans to generate revenue and how it intends to allocate and spend its money. Fostoria submits a plan annually to all of the three counties in which it lies — Hancock, Seneca and Wood.Anytime Fostoria ends up in the red is good for the city, which has been designated as being in "fiscal emergency" by the state auditor's office since 2016. That "fiscal emergency" tag has required the city to do business under the auditor's eye for quite a bit of time.Mayor Don Mennel said after Tuesday's meeting that Fostoria, as it has in recent years, is getting closer to having its undesirable label removed."I give a lot of credit to (former mayor and now safety service director) Eric Keckler and his conservative budgeting and control on capital projects," Mennel said. "Our general fund is in very good shape and we are making progress. We're actually beginning the process to, hopefully, get out of financial emergency."Mennel said he's been told that's not likely to occur until 2026."We're hoping that it happens right after the first of the year," he said. "A lot of it is dependent upon what we do this fall with our budget and with water rates, specifically, and the state auditor's office has to have the time — quote, unquote — to go through their process to allow us to come out. This frustrates me, but that's the excuse we're being given."Council also approved a petition to vacate an alley that runs between Fremont and Sandusky streets, near the Fostoria Woman's Club. Property owner Wade Verhoff and Fostoria Woman's Club President Patti Gregg signed the petition. The reason for the requested vacation, the petition said, is "to close off alley that intersects between the club and the club's parking lot. The large volume of traffic in the area creates a dangerous situation for members coming and going from the club to their vehicles."