The planned improvements to Washington’s power lines along N.C. Highway 32 are a step closer to completion.

During its Nov. 23 meeting, Washington’s City Council voted 3-1 to amend the city’s budget by $327,000 so sections three, four and five of the reconductoring project can be completed. The money will be used to buy poles, hardware and conductors to improve the delivery of electricity. Voting for the measure were council members William Pitt, Larry Beeman and Richard Brooks. Councilman Doug Mercer voted against it.

“These funds were budgeted in last year’s budget. This is the carryover for these funds (into the current budget) to complete this project,” said Keith Hardt, the city’s electric utilities director.

Mercer said it was his understanding the money being carried forward was for labor and the materials needed for the project were “in hand” and it was a matter of issuing purchase orders to install the equipment that had already been purchased. “Now, we’re being asked to provide $330,000, plus or minus, for the purchase equipment, and that’s not in line. What we would do, I thought, when we said we would hold the money in fund balance is that we would release it when purchase orders were presented and we would release the money to cover purchase orders for labor activities,” Mercer said. “And now we’re being asked to buy $330,000 worth of equipment.”

Hardt told Mercer that in the information packet the council members and mayor received in October that information about labor was for projects on Fifth Street and Second Street in the city and the information about materials was about the N.C. 32 project.

“In the previous year’s budget, there was money for materials. We’re just asking for that money to be brought forward,” Hardt said.

Mercer further questioned other elements of the N.C. 32 project, including the purchase of utility poles and their sizes, before saying he wanted to table the matter for further review before the council acted upon it. His motion to table the matter died for lack of a second.