Wyomissing Weighs $14.8M Capital Asks, Up to $2.7M Gap

Wyomissing Borough's departments have asked for $14,800,658 in capital spending next year, with no funding sources attached, according to the minutes of the Sept. 30 special budget meeting (p. 2). The fire department accounts for $7.9 million of that, including a $5 million renovation of the fire station. The same staff slide deck that opened both budget meetings puts the borough's general fund structural operating deficit at $2.4 million to $2.7 million a year, per the Sept. 30 presentation and the Sept. 16 presentation. A structural deficit means the borough's regular revenue does not cover its regular costs, even in a normal year.

Council met Oct. 13, but the minutes of that meeting are not posted, so whether the consent items passed is not known.

The Sept. 16 minutes and Sept. 30 minutes appear on the Agenda Center as minutes and are signed. Their approval was item 6a on the Oct. 13 consent agenda; the unsigned copies in the Oct. 13 packet carry the "DRAFT" watermark that appears on every page of the packet. Sept. 16 was a rescheduled meeting, held on a Wednesday rather than council's usual second Tuesday, with council members Jennifer Reimer and Richard Weinhoffer absent (Sept. 16 minutes, p. 1). All seven members attended Sept. 30 (Sept. 30 minutes, p. 1).

The $14.8 million list

Staff presented the requests in two parts. On Sept. 16, Public Works Director Jim Babb asked for $2,175,000 for streets, storm sewers, fleet and equipment, and spoke about starting a fleet replacement program with reserve accounts. The parks and recreation director and the assistant public works director presented $3,065,463 in parks requests: repairs and inspection programs at the Happy Hollow, Wyomissing Hills and Berkshire Heights playgrounds, Stone House tennis court and building work, pond repairs, a pool infrastructure study, repairs to historic park structures, a parks master plan study and smaller items. Water ($235,000) and sewer ($1,075,000) needs added $1,310,000, for a first-night total of $6,550,463 (Sept. 16 minutes, p. 5; the minutes give the combined water and sewer figure as $1,075,000, which is the sewer line alone in the Sept. 16 deck, slides 20-22).

Interim Borough Manager Eden Ratliff told council the presentations covered "department wants and needs, with no funding sources figured in" (p. 5).

On Sept. 30, Fire Chief Eric Needle asked for $7,900,000: a tower ladder to replace the current ladder truck, fire station renovations, radios, a breathing-apparatus compressor and washer, rescue equipment, two command SUVs for two additional chief officers, and station equipment including fitness gear, lockers and computers. The minutes say the $5 million station renovation "would require additional planning for the project and financially, and could fall into multi-year budgeting" (Sept. 30 minutes, pp. 1-2). Police Chief John Phillips asked for $225,195 for a Ford Interceptor, radios and vehicle command cabinets (p. 2).

Ratliff also reminded council of the state RACP grant for the Borough Hall and police renovation. RACP, the Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program, is a state program that pays part of the cost of building projects. He said $125,000 is expected to go to design, with the request for proposals not awarded until November 2026 (p. 2). Interim Chief Financial Officer Scott Boehret gave a presentation on borrowing for long-term assets, built around "intergenerational equity," the idea that residents who benefit from an asset over its useful life should share in paying for it (p. 1).

The deficit behind the numbers

The minutes' narrative does not record the deficit figures. Those are in the slide decks posted on the borough's 2027 Budget page. The restated 2026 general fund shows a net position of negative $726,836. After removing one-time revenue and grant-funded capital costs and adding debt payments, the "structural total" is negative $1,443,670. Staff then add $750,000 to $1.25 million to "realign" utility-fund transfers to the general fund, transfers that another slide says were made "beyond reasonably justifiable levels" (slide 12), and state a total of $2.4 million to $2.7 million (Oct. 13 presentation, slide 4; slide 5 in the September decks). The slide's own numbers do not add to the low end of that range: negative $1,443,670 less $750,000 is about $2.19 million. The Sept. 16 version of the slide also printed the $726,836 as a positive figure; the later decks show it as negative.

The Oct. 13 deck goes further. With every capital and operating request left in, the preliminary 2027 general fund shows $14,442,200 in revenue against $20,517,601 in expenses, a gap of $6,075,401 (slide 6). The general fund balance, projected at $3,040,000 on Jan. 1, 2027, would be negative $3,036,000 by the end of 2027 on that path (slide 13). The deck lists the causes as revenue projections that missed by at least $500,000, operating costs funded with one-time money, utility transfers "beyond reasonably justifiable levels," and "major policy changes" made without matching revenue (slide 12). A 19-page draft discussion budget dated Oct. 12 shows the same general fund figures (pp. 1-8) and cuts the water and sewer overhead transfers from $750,000 each to $315,000 each (p. 2).

The borough's own tax take is small compared with the school district's. The Oct. 13 deck shows a sample bill in which the borough's 6.65 mills (5.15 general plus half a mill each for roads, EMS and fire) is about 13 cents of each property-tax dollar, with the Wyomissing Area School District taking 70 percent (slides 15-16). Our millage table lists the borough's general rate at 5.150 mills. Nothing in the posted documents proposes a 2027 tax rate.

Resident Adrian Jadic, who spoke at both meetings, filed written comments dated Oct. 9 that are attached to each set of minutes. He asked council to publish year-end spending forecasts, pause new discretionary event spending, and release financial records more quickly (Sept. 16 minutes, pp. 7-9; Sept. 30 minutes, pp. 4-7).

Pension bill, West Lawn closeout and a 4-1 vote

Council's Sept. 16 consent agenda passed 5-0 (Sept. 16 minutes, p. 2). It set the 2027 Minimum Municipal Obligation for the pension plans at $1,494,241. The MMO is the least a municipality must pay into its employee pension plans each year under state law. The same vote approved a $95,421 change order to JNS Paving and Excavating for the West Lawn Interceptor, a sewer project, for final quantity adjustments, restoration and asbestos pipe disposal, along with a $147,587.48 payment to the same contractor. Council member Christopher Valente questioned the change order; Babb said it covered grass and street restoration beyond bid quantities and that grants from the Highlands program and the H2O ARPA program mean "no out of pocket cost to the Borough" (p. 2).

Also in that vote: two payments to Premier Building Restoration for fire station exterior repairs ($107,398.29 and $59,674.54), $67,454.30 to Sewer Specialty Services for sewer televising and cleaning, $60,650 in tree removal quotes from Martin's Tree Service, and approvals for the Reading Hospital Medical Center half marathon on Oct. 18 and the Wyomissing Homecoming Parade on Oct. 10 (p. 2).

The one split vote was Resolution 2026-27, creating a nature play zone in a pocket of woods at the Wyomissing Hills playground, which passed 4-1 with Council President Kristen Gajewski opposed. Recreation Board member Jessica Christman presented it as low-cost, with materials already secured or on hand at the parks department, and the resolution is contingent on the expense staying minimal under borough purchasing rules. The minutes record that the engineer and solicitor found ADA rules do not apply because the site has no parking lot and is not reachable by all, and that Ratliff tried to reach three nearby residents, could not reach one and did not hear back from the other two (p. 2). Jadic's written comments question the site, safety review and ongoing maintenance cost (p. 8).

Fire station grant, two resignations, trash

Ratliff reported that the borough won a $250,000 Local Share Account grant for interior fire station renovations. LSA grants distribute casino gaming revenue through the state's Commonwealth Financing Authority. He also said two firefighters resigned and the Civil Service Commission will be asked to build and certify a hiring list (Sept. 16 minutes, p. 3). The fire chief's October report in the Oct. 13 packet shows 190 responses in September, 606 overtime hours and four shifts below full staffing (packet, p. 85).

On trash, Ratliff said residents have complained about the haulers and staff are in constant contact with them. He cited labor shortages on the hauler's side and preparation problems on residents' side. The minutes record that service under the previous haulers cost $575 per household per year in 2025, costs $504 under the new haulers in 2026, and would have risen to $597 had the old contracts continued; the current agreements run until 2028 (p. 3). Fixes under discussion include forward-facing truck cameras, route mapping with borough addresses and a possible route inspector.

Ratliff also said quotes were being gathered for the insurer to rebuild the Wyomissing Hills pillars that a motorist struck (p. 3). The Oct. 13 consent agenda carried a $13,100 quote from Jeremiah Wright Masonry for that work.

The Berkshire Mall overlay, and a 120-unit apartment plan

Sam Wiser of Salzmann Hughes, the borough's special legal counsel for land development projects, which council authorized on Aug. 11 to advertise the overlay amendment (Aug. 11 minutes, p. 4), walked council through a revised Commercial and Industrial Zoning Overlay for the area including the Berkshire Mall (Sept. 16 minutes, p. 4). That 6-0 authorization was contingent on reviews by the borough solicitor, whom the Oct. 13 packet identifies as Heidi Masano (packet, p. 1), the borough and county planning commissions, and on "any material modifications returning to Council for review prior to advertisement" (Aug. 11 minutes, p. 4). An overlay is a set of extra zoning rules laid on top of the existing district; a landowner can build under either the base rules or the overlay's. Wiser said the revisions "are not meant to encompass the needs of any developer specifically," and Ratliff said no land development plans for the mall have been received (pp. 3-4). No vote was taken; this was a presentation. An earlier version was on council's Aug. 11 agenda for authorization to advertise, as noted in our Aug. 10 preview.

As presented, the overlay would keep all uses allowed by right in the commercial and industrial zones and add apartments and townhouses above non-residential uses, 30 percent by right or 60 percent by special exception, plus age-restricted housing above non-residential uses. Accessory warehousing would be allowed up to 25 percent of floor area but not as a standalone warehouse. Minimum open area would rise from 10 percent to 25 percent, the perimeter setback would return to the full underlying setback, and a developer could proceed on as little as one acre. Shared parking, stormwater and utilities across a site would run through a recorded lot owners association that the borough could enforce by lien (p. 4). The mall rezoning is a redevelopment matter, not a data center, a distinction our data center tracker draws; the tracker's Wyomissing row records council's Aug. 11 authorization for its solicitor to draft separate data center rules.

Separately, Ratliff said a concept for an apartment complex at 1714 State Hill Road would go to the October Planning Commission (p. 3). The engineer's report in the Oct. 13 packet says a conditional use application has been submitted for a five-story, 120-unit apartment building there (packet, p. 84). A conditional use is one the zoning code allows only after council holds a hearing on the specific application and can attach conditions. At 915 Penn Avenue, the Wrangler lot, the report says council granted a conditional use on May 12, the decision has been appealed, a time extension runs through Nov. 10, and the owner is preparing an application for zoning relief (p. 84).

What was on the Oct. 13 agenda

The consent agenda asked council to:

• Award the 2027 one-year mowing contract to Crouse Construction LLC at $90,125 as the lowest responsible bid, waiving a possible shortfall in its bid security.
• Pay Reamstown Excavating $101,749.75 for the 2026 50/50 sidewalk program. The engineer's memo says the original contract was $91,970 and the work is at 116 percent of contract (packet, p. 23).
• Adopt Resolution 2026-30 applying for an $80,000 Category 4 Local Share Account grant for fire department renovations (packet, pp. 52-53). This is a new application, separate from the $250,000 LSA award reported Sept. 16.
• Approve a first amendment to a July 14, 2026 water main agreement with CG Broadcasting LLC and CG Broadcasting Developer LLC, which lets the developer install an upgraded sanitary sewer line near a borough water main in the U.S. 222 utility easement (agenda item 6i). The deadline moves from Aug. 31, 2026 to no later than June 30, 2027, and the developer still reimburses the borough's costs (packet, p. 55). The property is at Broadcasting and Paper Mill roads in Spring Township, the site of the Broadcast District.
• Ratify $2,162,929.89 in September disbursements and transfers (packet, p. 58).
• Approve "the ratification of the termination of the Director of Recreation" and authorize Ratliff to recruit a new one. The agenda does not name the person or give a reason, and the packet contains no memo on the item. The packet's Oct. 9 cover memo lists Randy McKinley as Recreation and Communications Director (packet, p. 1), and the Sept. 16 minutes show him presenting the parks requests; the agenda does not say whether the item concerns him.

Item 10, "2027 Budget Development," was the public hearing on the operating budget; the borough's own summary says staff outlined the projected deficit and the costs of the library, pool, summer playground and code enforcement. The packet also holds letters from two residents asking council not to cooperate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and to adopt a resolution saying so (packet, pp. 4-6); no agenda item responds to them.

The engineer's report adds that the 4th and Oley pump station goes out to bid in October for 2027 construction, 2026 street paving was scheduled to begin Oct. 21, and the firehouse exterior repairs awarded to Premier at $214,468.67 are down to punch-list items (packet, p. 83).

What happens next

The borough's budget calendar lists an Unmet Needs Report on Wednesday, Oct. 21 at 7 p.m., a public hearing and "decision meeting" Oct. 28 (time to be announced), adoption and advertising of a preliminary budget at the Nov. 10 regular meeting, a budget town hall Dec. 2, and a special meeting to adopt the budget Dec. 15, per the Oct. 13 presentation (slide 3). All are at Borough Hall, 22 Reading Blvd.

The online budget feedback form closes Oct. 23. Council normally meets the second Tuesday of each month, per the council page, at 7 p.m. at Borough Hall according to its agendas, but September's meeting was moved, so check the Agenda Center before going. Our guide explains how to find any Berks municipality's meeting schedule.