Wilmington City Council voted 8-5 to approve a 154 million dollar FY17 budget at a special meeting Wednesday night.
The budget vote failed last Thursday night in a 7-6 vote, forcing a second vote.
Councilman Bob Williams made a motion to approve an amended budget with minor adjustments - including the elimination of one sewer maintenance mechanic position. He also received assurances from the administration it would push to reach new agreements city police and fire unions.
He said he used his ‘no’ vote last Thursday to get the ball rolling again on long-stalled negotiations.
"I used my vote at the right time," Williams said. "I knew what the count was. I knew that if I was a ‘no’ vote it would open that door of communication from me to the administrative staff. And I used it to the best of my ability. Now am I willing to hold up the entire city process on my belief? No. But I got my point across and I used my position to get them to get things moving.”
Williams wants both sides to act as adults and talk things out, instead of using the legal system to bide time.
Williams says he’s seen the negative impacts of the unresolved labor negotiations on the workforce and wants the settlements reached as soon as possible.
Councilman NnamdiChukwuochawasn’t happy with the final budget, saying the city can do better with the dollars it has.
He says many vacant positions still need to be assessed. He also points to the lack of accountability for initiatives like the city’s Cease Violence program.
“The outside reports dealing with the crime commission reports suggested it should be housed outside of the city, maybe with one of the hospitals or one of the partners," Chukwuocha said. "But that wasn’t taken into consideration. We’ve funded that initiative solely without any support from partners for the last three years and it hasn’t yielded any true impact in our communities.”
Chukwuocha says the $225,000 Cease Violence grant was given three years ago to the city’s Department of Parks and Recreation. However, in this newly approved budget, the funding was reallocated to the mayor’s office.
