PARKERSBURG - City Council voted to table a $25,000 transfer request from the finance director Tuesday.

City officials sought a $25,000 transfer from the sanitation department to the finance department to cover a lease-purchase payment. The transfer was approved by council's Finance Committee last week.

But Tuesday, the full council voted to table the matter until its next meeting after several council members questioned the move.

Finance Director Doug Life told council members the money was needed to cover a lease/purchase agreement for some recently purchased software for the finance department. Life said the sanitation department had the surplus due to the delayed delivery of two packer trucks and a van.

Several council members thought they had previously approved funding for the purchase of the software and questioned why the money for the payments was not available.

In February, council unanimously approved more than $139,000 for the purchase.

Mayor Bob Newell requested to speak but was beat to the punch by Councilman Brad Kimes, who made the motion to table the resolution until the next meeting. The motion passed by unanimous vote, 9-0.

After the meeting Newell said the money, while approved by council, was never moved by former Finance Director Randy Craig.

Earlier this summer Craig was arrested, charged with embezzlement. He is alleged to have made unauthorized purchases totaling about $10,000 over a three-year period.

City officials are still awaiting reports from the state auditor's office as well as the city's private accounting firm.

"Council did approve the funding, but Randy didn't move the money," Newell said. "That was part of the accounting problem that Doug has encountered."

Council elected John Rockhold as its president and Jim Reed as vice president for the 2010 term.

Rockhold was a near-unanimous selection as president, while Reed narrowly beat Tom Joyce for the vice presidency, by a 5-4 vote.

Council member Mike Reynolds was nominated to be president, but the nomination died for lack of a second. Rockhold was approved by a 8-1 vote. Councilman John Sandy abstained.

Sandy said he had spoken with Rockhold and Joyce prior to the nomination and would not support either.

Council unanimously approved the re-appointments of Judi Ball and Ann Bennett to the Juliana Architectural Review Board and Seldon Wigal Jr., Francis Angelos, Charlie Matthews and Eric Gumm to the Municipal Planning Commission.

Newell provided council an update on his meeting with the Wood County Commission Monday to discuss the Fort Boreman armory project.

"I think they are now on board as much as the rest of us and awaiting information just like we are," he said.