Written with the help of AI from the Dayton City Commission agenda, Wednesday, November 4, 2026 and the meeting video.
What was on the agenda
This recap is based on the meeting video and the agenda. The video covers the 4 p.m. finance work session, so it does not show how the commission voted on the items below. The agenda’s City Manager recommendations were offered for commission approval.
Why it matters: Staff expect the general fund to end 2026 using about $4 million in cash reserves, with personnel costs at 76.5% of operating spending and income tax collections flat.
The recommended purchase orders total $266,824. Aviation would buy two Ford F-150 trucks with police package upfittings from Beau Townsend Ford, Inc. for $95,250. Water would buy three 2027 Ford Maverick XLT AWD Hybrid Supercrews from Cronin Ford North for $111,794, and a 2027 Ford F-250 with additional equipment options from Beau Townsend Ford, Inc. for $59,780.
The agenda also lists a $1,947,428 contract with Becker Construction Inc. for Fire Station 16 renovations, running through May 31, 2028. The contract has a 5% goal for participation by minority business enterprises (MBEs), and the agenda lists 6.96% achieved.
Other recommendations include a first renewal and amendment of the agreement with the City of Moraine for waste collection services, bringing in $419,126.40 through Dec. 31, 2027, and a $20,000 legal settlement with Bey & Associates, LLC and Shane Brown on a moral obligation claim (No. 2025-142).
On legislation, an ordinance (a city law) on first reading, No. 32221-26, would provide temporary appropriations for operating and capital expenses until the 2027 annual appropriation ordinance passes. Three resolutions were on first reading. No. 6966-26 would accept a $182,718 grant award from the U.S. Department of Justice. No. 6967-26 reaffirms the city’s commitment to equal protection and freedom from discrimination. No. 6968-26 would approve the City Manager’s 2027 operating and capital improvement budget recommendations. Resolution No. 6965-26, on second reading, would approve grant applications and awards from the Miami Valley Regional Planning Commission under the Transportation Improvement Program and repeal Resolution No. 6956-26.
A public hearing was set on case PLN2026-00097, a request to rezone 2.57 acres at 427 Valley Street and other parcels from MR-5 (Mature Single-Family) to CI (Campus Institutional). It also covers 0.43 acres southeast of Stanley Avenue and Valley Street, from ER-4 (Eclectic Single-Family Residential) to CI.
Third-quarter general fund briefing
Finance staff said that through September, general fund revenues were $2.8 million, or 1.6%, above the year-to-date budget. Expenditures were $3.8 million, or 2%, below budget. Revenue was $1.7 million, or 1%, above September 2025, a gap staff said is understated because 2025 included a $3.7 million final transfer from the photo enforcement fund.
Personnel costs were up $7.3 million, or 6.2%, from a year earlier. Staff pointed to wage increases, fewer vacancies and no health insurance holiday in 2026. Personnel makes up 76.5% of operating spending. Staff said each 1% of growth in personnel costs equals about $1.7 million against a $171 million personnel budget.
Income tax collections were down about $658,000, or 0.5%. Withholding, about 87% of the total, rose 1.4% to $109.1 million. Business profits fell 7.6%, and refunds, about $4.3 million, were about 32% higher than last year. Staff described the net effect as flat.
Sources trailed uses by $13.6 million through September. Staff attributed that mainly to investments funded in full at the start of the year, plus a $3.2 million transfer for the 27th payroll for police and fire and year-end interest earnings that had not yet been booked. Staff said they expect the year to end with about $4 million in use of cash reserves.
Other figures included local government fund revenue up over $2.2 million but still below 2022, adult-use cannabis tax revenue that included a one-time $1.1 million deposit in January, and fuel costs up 18%. Utility costs were just under $1.5 million higher than in 2025, partly because some 2025 bills were held and paid this year.
Staff also said the Dayton-area job count reached 402,300 in September, the highest point they have seen, with 2,800 more jobs than a year earlier.
Dayton Recovery Plan
Staff said the Dayton Recovery Plan, which ends in December 2026, has spent all of its funds. Awarded contracts total $94.8 million across 60 projects, and $82.3 million of the roughly $102 million has been spent so far. The MBE goal was $23.1 million and $22.4 million has been achieved, a 97% rate.
Three projects in the Improving Neighborhoods category remain to be awarded. They include the $1 million Longfellow Midtown project by United Church Home. Another is the Fairview pool house demolition, $587,200, which was bid three times, with demolition targeted by May 2027. A related spray park project is expected to start in early 2027.
Aviation and water updates
The aviation director said passengers were down 4.2%, or 20,541, through the period compared with 2025. He cited bad winter weather, fuel price spikes and airlines cutting capacity. Staff expect new Breeze service to help year-end numbers. Airline revenue was up 3%, concession revenue was up 21.1%, and restaurant revenue was up 133%, or $167,000. Advertising revenue is on track for about $700,000, which the director called a record in his time at the airport. Aviation ended the quarter with about a $1.1 million deficit, which staff attributed mainly to higher utility and personnel costs.
The water director said water fund revenue was up $2.8 million, or 5.2%, while spending rose 10.2%, or $5 million, requiring a very small use of cash reserves. The sanitary sewer fund’s revenue rose 1.7%, or almost $650,000, and spending fell 2.7%, or about $805,000, with no reserves used. Staff said cleaning some wells in house saves about $40,000 to $50,000 per well.
Commissioner comments
Commissioners praised staff for spending all Dayton Recovery Plan funds by the deadline and asked to be kept updated on unfinished projects. Commissioner Fairchild thanked staff for the work and joked that their reward is implementing a new enterprise resource planning (ERP) system. Commissioner Shaw thanked aviation staff for the added detail on landing fees, and Commissioner Joseph praised the water department’s in-house work. The video of the finance briefing includes no resident comments and no next meeting date.
Source: Dayton City Commission agenda, Wednesday, November 4, 2026. Meeting video: watch on YouTube.
By the numbers: Companies bought 26.6% of the City of Dayton homes sold in 2025, by county records. Source: Montgomery County Auditor, tax parcel and sales records (public GIS layers). See the data. The Dayton metro had 402,200 nonfarm jobs in September 2026, compared with 398,900 a year earlier (BLS, preliminary). Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Employment Statistics, Dayton-Kettering MSA (through FRED). See the data.
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