by Chris Munzing
Public hearings will be held at City Hall on May 17 and May 24, and the City Council is expected to vote on the budget on May 24. A budget must be in place before July 1, the first day of the new fiscal year.
"I think the budget is where the [Republican coalition] majority wanted it to be," Theofan said. "Nobody is being laid off. That I can tell you with 100 percent certainty." Several positions are being eliminated, but Theofan said that they had either been empty for some time or were recently vacated.
The proposal calls for anticipated revenue of $51,816,243, which would result in a surplus of less than $200,000. The projected revenue includes the estimated $3 million the city would collect from the sale of a section of Shore Road to the Superblock developers. Not included is the sale of the property beneath the Waldbaum's shopping center, which was proposed last year but blocked by the City Council's Democrats. Theofan would not declare the deal dead, saying it could reappear in the future.
The police department saw its budget cut by $318,000 in the plan, though six positions are being added: a detective-sergeant, two detectives, two police officers and a switchboard. Theofan said that the magic behind the decrease in funding but an increase in manpower is anticipated retirements in higher-salary positions and a reduction of overtime. "If we hire some replacements at lower salary levels, we'll come out ahead," he said.
Though the budget has no tax increase, several fees would be increased should they be approved by the City Council next Tuesday. Water and sewer fees would rise for the second straight year if the measure passes. The new quarterly rates for water use would be a minimum of $3.29 per thousand gallons, with a minimum quarterly charge of $39.47.
A water-conservation surcharge would be applied for usage above 150,000 gallons. The use of 150,001 to 300,000 gallons would cost $3.35 per thousand gallons; the charge for 300,001 to 600,000 would rise to $3.51 per thousand gallons; and use of more than 600,000 gallons would run $3.85 per thousand gallons.
The city could not give an estimate of how much water the average home uses.
Should the budget be approved, the garbage collection fee for property with one or more residential units would also increase, from $290 to $325 annually. Theofan said that the garbage-fee increase is long overdue, but added that the quality of the sanitation department and garbage collection has improved greatly under the current administration.
Other fee increases up for a vote at the May 3 meeting include pet euthanasia fees at the city's animal shelter, home security alarm permits, business license fees and an increase in the one-day beach pass fee from $6 to $7.
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