During the City’s second scheduled budget workshop held on August 26, the Commission spent nearly two hours listening while residents expressed their concerns over the city’s proposed budget for fiscal year 2008-09.
Local resident Gerald Weber who owns a boat docked at the Battery Park Marina started by questioning the wisdom in increasing city expenditures during an economic downturn. He specifically queried the Board on the proposal to charge User Fees at the Battery Park Marina as recommended by staff. He stated that people on the streets and businesses are talking about how they are struggling to make ends meet while the City is raising their taxes. Weber also asked the City Commission not to make the same mistake as the County by granting across-the-board raises during bad economic times.
Joe Taylor stated that while he supported the proposed User Fees he felt that the timing was not right. Beverly Hewitt lamented over the sharp increase in the assessed value of her property and questioned the Commission concerning the need for a fulltime building inspector.
Commissioner Frank Cook who served on the Citizens Budget Committee explained to the people in attendance the process the Committee followed before making their recommendations to the City Commission. He further explained that the decline in revenue and the increases in the cost of gasoline and utilities had caused the Committee to take a closer look at where to find revenue to fund the budget. Cook also stated that city employees have not had a cost of living increase in two years and they are falling behind other employees throughout the county.
In addition to essential government services, the proposed budget without changes includes $1,500 for the Humane Society, Senior Citizens and the Dixie Theater and $3,500 for the Franklin Promise food pantry.
In the end and in preparation of the September 9, public hearing the City Commission instructed Lee Mathes, City Clerk to multiply the combined base salaries of all city employees by 3 percent and to divide the sum into the number of fulltime employees to determine the amount for a cost of living increase for employees excluding commissioners. The Commission further instructed Mathes to reduce the 6.125 tentatively approved millage rate by the difference, however the Commission did not instruct the City Clerk to factor in any of the proposed User Fees.
Local resident Gerald Weber who owns a boat docked at the Battery Park Marina started by questioning the wisdom in increasing city expenditures during an economic downturn. He specifically queried the Board on the proposal to charge User Fees at the Battery Park Marina as recommended by staff. He stated that people on the streets and businesses are talking about how they are struggling to make ends meet while the City is raising their taxes. Weber also asked the City Commission not to make the same mistake as the County by granting across-the-board raises during bad economic times.
Joe Taylor stated that while he supported the proposed User Fees he felt that the timing was not right. Beverly Hewitt lamented over the sharp increase in the assessed value of her property and questioned the Commission concerning the need for a fulltime building inspector.
Commissioner Frank Cook who served on the Citizens Budget Committee explained to the people in attendance the process the Committee followed before making their recommendations to the City Commission. He further explained that the decline in revenue and the increases in the cost of gasoline and utilities had caused the Committee to take a closer look at where to find revenue to fund the budget. Cook also stated that city employees have not had a cost of living increase in two years and they are falling behind other employees throughout the county.
In addition to essential government services, the proposed budget without changes includes $1,500 for the Humane Society, Senior Citizens and the Dixie Theater and $3,500 for the Franklin Promise food pantry.
In the end and in preparation of the September 9, public hearing the City Commission instructed Lee Mathes, City Clerk to multiply the combined base salaries of all city employees by 3 percent and to divide the sum into the number of fulltime employees to determine the amount for a cost of living increase for employees excluding commissioners. The Commission further instructed Mathes to reduce the 6.125 tentatively approved millage rate by the difference, however the Commission did not instruct the City Clerk to factor in any of the proposed User Fees.
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