STEUBENVILLE — Finance Director Dave Lewis unveiled Steubenville’s budget for 2026 Tuesday, a document he describes as “extremely tight.”

Lewis said the overall budget totals $72,128,175, though the general fund accounts for just $21,800,629 of that.

It’s scheduled for a vote during council’s Dec. 8 meeting. If approved, it will take effect Jan. 1.

“Hospitalization insurance had a (big) impact on the 2026 opening budget because the renewal came in at about 20 percent (higher) over last year,” Lewis said after the meeting, pointing out the balance in the city’s healthcare fund is also very low due to a number of high claims.

“The budget is extremely tight,” Lewis said, telling council they “really need as a city to watch spending and cut back wherever you can.”

He said in 2026, the city will have to use leftover ARPA lost revenue funds “to cover some of the requested capital expenditures and health care costs,” pointing out reductions “were made after council’s budget workshops, then discussed with the department heads and completed with the city manager’s involvement.” He said the cuts were necessary to help offset some of the high healthcare claims the city has been experiencing

“The general fund operating budget is balanced for 2026 after accounting for $2,062,182.22 in lost revenue funds budgeted for expenditure next year,” he told council. “As previously noted, $10 million in ARPA funds were reimbursed to the general fund in 2022 to comply with ARPA requirements and provide the city with greater flexibility. The remaining funds are budgeted for 2026, including $675,000 to help cover general fund health care claims, resulting in a projected decrease in the general fund cash balance.”

In other business, council heard Pleasant Heights resident Jan Yabs ask that they “refrain from making any irreversible property or zoning decisions” that would clear the way for an old church building to be used as a warming station for the homeless.

“Community input is essential to making sound decisions that shape our town,” Yabs wrote. “We understand that cold weather is approaching and emergencies often require such action. However, urgency doesn’t eliminate the need for careful fact-finding (and) planning.”

Yabs, speaking on behalf of concerned Pleasant Heights residents, said the neighborhood is a “vulnerable section of the city, prone to crime and violence.”

“There is ongoing, active drug trafficking occurring in the immediate vicinity and throughout the hilltop,” he said, pointing out there’ve also been shootings and other violent crimes in that area.

Yabs said the Pleasant Heights community’s concerns “are not with providing help for those in need, nor do we presume that individuals utilizing these services would cause harm, (but) we want to ensure that efforts to do good are carried out in ways that are safe, sustainable and appropriate for both the neighborhood and individual needs.”

Councilman Royal Mayo renewed concerns that the Urban Mission emergency shelters, which closed four weeks ago due to funding issues, are sitting idle. He insists it’s the city’s responsibility to ensure shelter for those in need, though others on council disagree.

“We need to have serious discussions with Urban Mission, they have the building, as well as other stakeholders … so we can get some of those people off the street,” Mayo said.

“As a city, I don’t know that we have the capacity,” Councilwoman Heather Hoover said, pointing out it comes down to “who is going to pay to keep the lights on.”

Council also:

• Scheduled special meetings for 6:30 p.m. Dec. 11 and 18 for in-person meetings with the five candidates for city manager prior to the start of council’s public sessions at 7:30 p.m.

• Scheduled a utility committee meeting for 7 p.m. Tuesday to discuss additional costs associated with wastewater treatment plant integrity issues.

• Heard first reading of an ordinance authorizing City Manager Jim Mavromatis to accept a Water Supply Revolving Loan Account agreement for the Belleview water tank rehabilitation project.

• Sunshined legislation adopting a revenue tax budget for the year ending Dec. 31; make appropriations for current and other expenditures through the end of 2025; adopting a revenue tax budget for the 2026 budget year; adopting the 2026 budget; adopting a capital improvement plan for the city in 2026; repealing the city’s existing table of organization and replacing with a new one reflecting charter changes voters approved in November; adopting the city’s indirect cost allocation plan; and reallocating ARPA lost revenue funds currently held in the general fund. All will be treated as emergencies.