Council Set to Vote on New Weirton Area Water Board Member
The City of Weirton is preparing to appoint a new member to the Weirton Area Water Board. Under the city charter, Water Board members are appointed by the Mayor with the approval of City Council. The appointment will fill the seat previously held by George Ash, whose term expired on May 31, 2026.
The process has attracted public attention in recent weeks. A previous nomination of Lawrence Wright was withdrawn during the May 11, 2026 City Council meeting after he declined consideration following public criticism on social media.
The water system has become a key topic driven by resident concerns over water quality, infrastructure management, and accountability. Among the most active community advocates has been Chris Gruda, who has frequently spoken on water-related issues and has called for greater oversight and transparency within the utility.
In response to community interest, Bloodhound Media created a webpage allowing residents to express support for Gruda to be appointed to the Water Board. Between May 15 and May 22, the page received 104 views from 91 unique visitors. Visitor engagement was high, with a bounce rate of 21%, indicating that most visitors interacted with content on the page. Based on site analytics, an estimated 60 to 65 emails were sent to city officials through the platform.
On June 3, 2026, the City of Weirton published the agenda for the upcoming City Council meeting. Item 15 of the agenda contains a resolution to appoint Bob Kolanko to the Weirton Area Water Board.
Kolanko previously served on the Weirton Zoning Board of Appeals. According to his LinkedIn profile, he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Animal and Veterinary Science from West Virginia University in 1987 and later obtained a Master of Business Administration from Franciscan University of Steubenville in 1998.
His professional career spans a blend of education, corporate finance, and supply chain leadership. He spent over a decade in procurement within the steel industry and served as a Chief Financial Officer in the biotech sector, in addition to earlier roles as a high school science department chair and an adjunct physics professor. He has been with Weirton Medical Center since 2010, advancing from specialized clinical purchasing roles to Director of Materials Management. He currently serves as a Director at WVU Medicine Weirton Medical Center, where he brings decades of experience in procurement, contract administration, and operational leadership to the organization.
While Kolanko’s background reflects extensive management and supply chain experience, it does not appear to include specialized expertise in water treatment operations, utility engineering, environmental compliance, or municipal water distribution systems.
The distinction between management experience and technical expertise is increasingly relevant given the challenges currently facing the Weirton Area Water Board. The utility is operating under heightened public scrutiny and regulatory oversight. According to the West Virginia Department of Health’s Drinking Water Viewer, the system currently has 23 active violations. The Board is also working under requirements established through Public Service Commission Case No. 25-0262-W-P and remains the subject of a pending class-action lawsuit filed by Logue Law Group and Onder Law LLC.
The question of whether boards benefit from specialized technical expertise is not unique to the Weirton Area Water Board. Public bodies often need to balance the value of professional subject-matter knowledge with broader leadership, financial, and administrative experience when selecting members.
For additional perspective, Bloodhound Media asked Hancock County Board of Education member-elect Melissa Bane how important it is for a new appointee to possess specialized, technical knowledge of the specific system they will oversee.
“It is highly important. This is a critical time for knowledgeable leadership over the Weirton water system. The events of the past year and a half make it abundantly clear that inadequate processes over many years have resulted in an unstable, unreliable, and frankly, untrustworthy utility. This and other county organizations have been marred by a lack of accountability, transparency, and proper oversight. It is time to change this. Careful selection of the next water board appointee is important to correcting longstanding issues.”
Bane went on to say that choosing the right people for public roles means looking at both their knowledge and their ability to work collaboratively. She stressed that the challenges facing the community demand capable, experienced problem‑solvers who know the right questions to ask to shape real solutions.
City Council is scheduled to vote on the appointment during its next regular meeting on Monday, June 8, 2026, at 7:00 p.m. Members of the public who wish to address Council must sign in before the meeting and will be allotted three minutes to speak.
