A string of convoluted votes by Warren City Council at the December meeting were brought full circle in a brief special meeting Monday night.

Ultimately, council agreed to allocate $175,000 for a rehabilitation project at Crescent Park this year.

City Manager Nancy Freenock said there was “some confusion” at the last council meeting about the project being removed and that complaints were made about councilmembers not being able to hear, including some who didn’t vote as intended.

Last month, council voted to defund the project at Crescent Park and remove the $175,000 from the budget entirely in a motion that passed 4-3. That was the motion that was rescinded on Tuesday.

Council approved the motion to rescind in a unanimous vote.

That initial vote in Dec. set off a flurry of subsequent votes.

With the project defunded, council then approved the 2021 budget with the $175,000 removed.

Unsuccessful attempts were then made not to raise taxes at all, to swing the funds back into the park project and to split the proposed tax increase in half.

Ultimately, council settled on a one mill tax increase and .1 increase in earned income tax rates and the $175,000 that the increase would generate was allocated to paving.

Freenock told council that the project will go out as one bid with alternatives so that it can be ensured it does not go over budget.

While the subject $175,000 in funding isn’t going to paving, Freenock said the city is putting the 2021 paving project documents together early and expects to go out to bid by early March. Having the project out to bid at that point, she said, would be early and could result in significant savings, allowing for the city to complete more work than it may have otherwise been able to afford.

During budget discussions in previous months, city staff recommended taking the $175,000 from paving and committing it to the park project.

Council has grant funds from the state to cover part of the project. Those funds, however, must be spent by the end of 2021.

Proposed improvements to the park include trail work, lights, new restroom facilities, parking and other infrastructure work.