By Richard Kerns
rkerns@newstribune.info
tribune staff writer

KEYSER — The Keyser Mayor and City Council Monday afternoon approved an annexation ordinance that will bring the Keyser Primary Middle-School complex into the city limits.
The unanimous approval on the ordinance’s second reading represents the final step on the city’s part in adding 30 acres of school-board owned property into the city. School board officials proposed the annexation as a means to improve police protection for the schools.
City Attorney John Athey said he will convey a copy of the ordinance to the Mineral County Commissioners, who must sign off on the measure. “We need to have their approval as a formality before it’s officially incorporated into the city limits,” he said.
In other business, the mayor and council approved spending up to $5,000 to equip three fire trucks from the Keyser Volunteer Fire Department with devices that change stop lights to all red when emergency vehicles are traveling through an intersection. Other fire department vehicles already have the devices.
Keyser Mayor Glen “Bunk” Shumaker said the expense is justified, as it will help to prevent accidents involving emergency vehicles responding to an accident or fire. “If it saves just one injury, it’s well worth it, to say nothing about a fatality,” he said.
Roger Newlin of the Keyser Volunteer Fire Department said the devices will improve safety by forcing motorists to stop at the red signal, where many will race through a green light even at the approach of a speeding emergency-response vehicle.
“No one gets out of your way any more,” he said.
Mona Ridder, executive director of the Mineral County Development Authority, appeared before the council to update members on the status of a Development Authority “Welcome to Keyser” sign that was recently removed from a spot near Memorial Bridge when the city installed a new welcome sign of its own.
Ridder said the sign that was replaced was one of a half-dozen such signs erected around the county about 15 years ago, some of which are starting to signs of age.
The Keyser sign also had the wrong phone number for the Development Authority.
As a result, Ridder said she no longer wanted to have the old sign re-erected, and will instead seek state grant funding to replace all of the authority signs in the county.
“There is no point in putting that sign up anywhere,” she said.
Appearing at the meeting with Ridder was Anne Palmer of the Mineral County Chamber of Commerce, who sought permission to string a banner across Mineral Street/Route 220, for a job fair to be held in April. Shumaker said authority for Mineral Street rests with the state Division of Highways, and the Chamber would have to seek their approval.
At that point Newlin offered space on the side of the downtown fire department adjacent to Mineral Street, where the department has hung banners in the past. “You get the banner, and we’ll put it up,” he said.
Palmer welcomed the offer.
The Council also voted to maintain pavilion and pool rental rates at last year’s levels for the upcoming summer.
During the individual council members’ reports, Councilman William “Sonny” Rhodes reported that Gov. Joe Manchin met with city officials at the recent Mineral County Day, and said  water and sewer projects were a priority for his administration. With the city gearing up to seek funding for a new $9 million water treatment plant project, Rhodes welcomed the news. “The first words out of his mouth were that his pet peeve is water and sewer,” the councilman said. “I lit up.”
The next meeting of the Keyser Mayor and City Council will be Monday, March 9 at 4:30 p.m.
The Sanitary, Water and Recreation boards meet Wednesday, March 4 beginning at 3 p.m.