PARKERSBURG — The Wood County Commission set its meeting dates and who serves on what committee in the upcoming year during its regular meeting on Monday, their first of 2026.

Commissioners Blair Couch and Jimmy Colombo agreed meeting times will remain at 9:30 a.m. on Mondays and Thursdays. Commissioner Robert Tebay was absent Monday, due to a personal commitment.

They will continue to have a public comment time set for the first thing on the Monday agenda. Probate cases will be handled on the third Thursday of the month with the Wood County prosecutor present if possible.

Officials have said that by meeting twice a week they meet more than any commission in the state.

Couch will remain as president with Colombo as president pro tem.

“I think he does a good job,” Colombo said of Couch. “We are good about discussing problems here.

“I have never been afraid to say what I think. This court has allowed me to do that. Everything has been open and on the table, which is the way it ought to be.”

Couch said they try to listen to all opinions, have discussions and bring any information to the forefront.

“We follow West Virginia state code in everything we do,” he said. “I appreciate all of the elected officials I get to serve with.

“I am going into my 20th year (as a commissioner), and this is the best group of elected officials I have served with.”

The agenda for meetings will be posted outside the doors of the courthouse, in the office of the county administrator and on the county’s website at woodcountywv.com.

Commissioners also agreed to mostly keep their committee and board assignments the same as in 2025, with a couple of adjustments.

All three commissioners will serve on the Wood County Commission on Crime, Delinquency and Corrections as well as the Local Emergency Planning Committee.

Couch will serve on the Wood County Parks and Recreation Commission (Mountwood Park), the Parkersburg-Wood County Convention and Visitors Bureau board, the Mid-Ohio Valley Health Department board and the Community Corrections/Day Report Center board.

Colombo will be the commission’s representative on the Wood County Recreation Commission, the Wood County Planning Commission, the Enhanced 911 Communications Advisory Board and the Wood County Fire Service Board.

Tebay will serve on the Wood County Airport Authority and the West Virginia University Extension Board.

Assessor John Kelly has been the commission’s designated representative on the Wood County Development Authority. County Clerk Joe Gonzales expressed interest in the position. Officials said they will talk it out and determine who will serve on that board.

Commissioners are looking to appoint representatives to serve on the Mid-Ohio Valley Regional Council and the Workforce Investment Board.

They said they would like to have more regular reports from appointees and the boards on which they serve.

In looking at the coming year, Couch said the commission will be looking at the county’s growing jail bill as they begin the process of putting together a budget and hope state lawmakers will address it in the upcoming session as the commission is limited in how it can generate funding. They are looking at the possibility of new economic development in the area with new job growth.

In other business:

– The commission is considering holding upcoming budget presentation hearings at the Resiliency Center. Couch also talked about the county being able to utilize the center to host statewide conferences and more.

– Gonzales said his office is preparing for the 2026 mid-term elections with the primary in May and the general election in November.

– Officials say the former Wood County sheriff’s building next to the Resiliency Center will be torn down once the electric company does some needed work onsite to prepare it for final demolition.