[{"_1":2,"_111":-5,"_112":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87,99],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6085731,"mediaKeyId","2902305-15623410dc637b6dadd1fa9f9d593fce","parentId",2902305,"title","Asheville staff brief council on FEMA disaster loan, narrowing budget gap and tax implications","audioSeconds",704,"startMs",439000,"endMs",1143000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2902305-15623410dc637b6dadd1fa9f9d593fce&start=439&end=1143","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2902305-15623410dc637b6dadd1fa9f9d593fce/thumbnail_439000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6085731/Asheville-City/Buncombe-County/North-Carolina/Asheville-staff-brief-council-on-FEMA-disaster-loan-narrowing-budget-gap-and-tax-implications","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6085731-92cd9fb1dfd0f1172805882fab9961f3/orig.mp4?Expires=1770440294&Signature=fgafh~j~KAH7o1KLw2lV3fMEKuJc-FKJYUZrLOOb4DGX6H-T0dh61KEHb95TpdO-FL2IjkLhq6nVFJ26QizAc-8kDkNirjyQnOubv1tQBYFdEoWcSBNBPuAwplz4Jn2moWp2c7b1uA3qUWOIf44HKhu5jQVvDB~c3pTGfA07-WZ3fUBuvubK-i0qQAce8YIVEEW6u5IbWnyMtMn7v9ksWKd~p~M47PFgc7ZCehf4SgtH7nNzVUKJBrdXMW1g2SnVTML-8VlOzScf51TwnN74tQrOIX1YGhexoIyMx0-OPRTi12Q0h8Sbo5JaIkH3n8SSwraxTcGUhqXH~1b~A9KvzA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Asheville City, NC","date","2025-04-09T00:16:23.547Z","article","City finance staff told the Asheville City Council on April 16 that the city has applied for the FEMA Community Disaster Loan (CDL) program and that other revenue and one-time savings measures have reduced a projected general fund gap for next fiscal year.

The loan application, if approved, could be for up to $5,000,000, and staff said they would return to council for formal approval if the award is offered. Tony McDowell, finance and management services, said the city and FEMA are finalizing the application and that preliminary analysis suggested the city may be eligible for the program's $5 million maximum.

Why it matters: The loan is one of the few federal mechanisms available to replace disaster-related local revenue loss; applying it to the general fund would reduce the property tax-rate increase staff say will be needed to close the budget gap. McDowell told council that if the city received a $5 million CDL and applied it to the general fund the likely tax-rate increase could fall from roughly 4 cents to about 1.5 cents on the tax rate.

Staff presented updated revenue estimates and one-time savings that also narrowed the projected general fund shortfall. McDowell said the city increased revenue estimates by about $900,000 (including a cost-allocation adjustment that raised transfers from enterprise funds by roughly $500,000) and identified about $500,000 in one-time expenditure savings (including use of opioid settlement funds and increased vacancy-savings assumptions). Those changes reduced the projected gap from roughly $11.4 million to about $10 million, leaving an estimated 10.4% fund balance against a 15% policy target.

McDowell cautioned that the CDL is a loan that would require payback over five or ten years unless Congress forgives it; he said current FEMA-based interest-rate estimates are just over 4 percent, producing interest costs in the $500,000-to-$1,000,000 range over the life of the loan if forgiveness does not occur. He also flagged that the CDL is a one-time revenue source that would not solve recurring structural gaps.

Council members asked whether enterprise funds had available balances to cover shortfalls; staff said some enterprise fund revenues (for example, a Streetcut Fund balance that staff recommended transferring) could be moved to the general fund, but many enterprise funds are restricted and cannot legally be used for general fund operations. McDowell said staff would return with additional fund-balance detail for enterprise funds.

Staff next steps: McDowell said staff expect notification from FEMA in a few weeks and would return to a formal council meeting to seek approval if the award is offered. He also asked council for direction on whether to apply any award to general fund revenue replacement, enterprise fund stabilization, or other priorities.

Ending: Council members signaled interest in using the loan to temper property-tax increases but emphasized the loan's limits and the need to protect recurring fund balance and other services. McDowell said no council action was required at the work session and staff would bring details back after FEMA's decision.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","City Council Budget Work Session – April 8, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","City finance staff told the Asheville City Council on April 16 that the city has applied for the FEMA Community Disaster Loan (CDL) program and that other revenue and one-time savings measures have reduced a projected general fund gap for next fiscal year.","taxTitle","Asheville City, Buncombe County, North Carolina","taxId",3915,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6085716,"Council gets 5-year CIP preview and overview of FEMA public-assistance recovery projects",7538,7538000,-1,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2902305-15623410dc637b6dadd1fa9f9d593fce&start=7538&end=0","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2902305-15623410dc637b6dadd1fa9f9d593fce/thumbnail_7538000.jpg","/articles/6085716/Asheville-City/Buncombe-County/North-Carolina/Council-gets-5-year-CIP-preview-and-overview-of-FEMA-public-assistance-recovery-projects","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6085716-9c7db4f3c0fb195fcdaecc6eecca38ec/orig.mp4?Expires=1770440294&Signature=l9dXCZVZVs0J3sj8Xsj8YUaFxpspyNm8kBC4T8kX7G7wuDEb4~~1aMzDOniUkrttc5BlADFRjjqSkdorAxuVSKjHB3Z0vgUkM~SVjrXR~I0-DLV~KZp-0s-V3AIjtS7K5mFoS0YrY4z-ckQSYRbLHPze~MiZdMurfulv2gJdPQ9gZ3Hpn9uZAu2iwwFMAZDyTIpA9aUMYx4s58YDsZ2aKXxrGMCsyIq62ZB6njeqZiSB5T1~jV7ECbSQWF~9XEp128KQ66wKrxpMGrC0HQeo9QrjJf-qDfLa5zbEwWYYxV0xmOkWOb6Hx7njIOCl2qVytKYnUcdJhaG8Hc8XCW8ldg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Jay Dundas, interim assistant city manager, told the Asheville City Council a 5-year capital improvement plan (CIP) is nearly complete and that the city is also advancing projects tied to the general-obligation bond approved in November 2024 and to storm-recovery funding through FEMA's Public Assistance (PA) program.

Dundas said staff are aiming for a long-term 10-year CIP but will publish a well-developed five-year CIP in the manager's proposed budget; the five-year draft assumes roughly $20\u0010to\u001025 million of capital capacity per year and lists projects the city will bring forward for study, design and later construction. He said the general-fund CIP slides in the presentation reflect only general-fund capital (not enterprise funds or all federal recovery funds) and the proposed bond allocations are separate lines of funding.

On recovery work, Dundas and staff described grouping storm-damaged assets into \"simple\" and \"complex\" PA projects to streamline FEMA reimbursement and reduce administrative overhead. Complex groupings include the French Broad Riverfront and greenways, Swannanoa River corridor repairs, North Fork/Biltmore projects and water-utility plant repairs. Dundas said the city had to preserve flexibility for some projects that may proceed on separate timelines, citing municipal golf course work as an example of an item already advanced to RFQ.

Dundas said FEMA PA can reimburse replacement-in-kind costs and can be used for mitigation and resilience measures in some cases. He said staff planned to submit a comprehensive damage inventory by May 16 and that project grouping choices affect administration and timing. Dundas also outlined early bond-related work including design and RFQs for pool and sidewalk projects, and noted the bond categories approved by voters: affordable housing, parks and recreation, public safety facilities and transportation.

Council questions included tree and landscape restoration in parks, grant-writing capacity to pursue outside funding, and how PA funding interacts with CDBG-DR and other grant sources. Dundas said staff would publish the detailed CIP and bond dashboard in the proposed budget materials and that additional recovery project details and timelines would follow.

Ending: Staff asked council for direction on prioritization and confirmed the manager's proposed budget would include the finalized five-year CIP and a dashboard of bond projects; Dundas said recovery projects will be continually refined through the FEMA PA process and through other grant opportunities.","Interim assistant city manager Jay Dundas previewed a five-year capital improvement plan, bond project activity and a grouping of storm-damage projects the city is submitting for FEMA Public Assistance.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6085722,"Staff recommends 3% hybrid pay increase to lift most city employees to living wage",210,3836000,4046000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2902305-15623410dc637b6dadd1fa9f9d593fce&start=3836&end=4046","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2902305-15623410dc637b6dadd1fa9f9d593fce/thumbnail_3836000.jpg","/articles/6085722/Asheville-City/Buncombe-County/North-Carolina/Staff-recommends-3-hybrid-pay-increase-to-lift-most-city-employees-to-living-wage","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6085722-f9cacfbbd64024e0f08b9936a32212ce/orig.mp4?Expires=1770440294&Signature=oZWuyyhxeEHo8mmBXOX1adfRFwDm7WmqRcgMKdR4Gco2X4rKEfnDh0~Yz5z6fdW2fihv~OTNFnH2Ur-bqB4Q3kXCk3p4Diq3BwJJQbKdjBSTQ0Uuhd-bzcy9M~QC3nb8MyUJb0TOeEBxxeua1Y~d66rsxqKDHMfb~umbn2-G4BXSi8V-fsWTA9q9hQNXMFukKPQXKwx-zLwLjxgHYEdCJlCS5WRpMwmtaKvwoNd3HNIacfJZDEoYfLqQqPZJWm8gOPyB4odIbvUxTts4TDxTg5hXHzfgyPnXBZQxZcKfVuYUUEMBCvdkTFfPKphyQuZy7eAEUpjSjc3-fsKzkPr6-A__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","City staff recommended a hybrid compensation approach at the Asheville City Council budget work session that they said would lift the largest number of employees above the local living-wage threshold while addressing compression for public-safety pay plans.

Lindsey Spangler summarized the options the city considered: an across-the-board percentage increase, and a hybrid where employees below median pay receive a larger flat adjustment while those above median receive a percentage. Staff recommended the 3% hybrid scenario as the option that would best move lower-paid employees toward the living-wage threshold calculated by Just Economics.

Spangler said the city currently has about 181 employees listed below the Just Economics living-wage figure, but 30 are trainees in police and fire who will move out of that bucket upon graduation, leaving about 151 employees below the threshold. Under the recommended 3% hybrid scenario staff estimated the number below the living-wage threshold would fall to about 84 employees.

Staff also tied the recommended compensation package to the earlier revenue discussion: depending on the compensation package chosen, the tax-rate increase was estimated to range from about 5 to 6 cents; if the city receives the FEMA CDL and applies it to the gap, the corresponding tax-rate impact would fall to an estimated 2.6 to 3.3 cents. Tony McDowell provided the combined tax-rate slides and said staff's recommended approach would balance living-wage progress with fiscal constraints.

Council members asked for more scenario modeling and noted the community's current economic stress as a factor in weighing tax-rate changes. Several council members signaled preliminary support for the hybrid option but said they would want to review the manager's proposed budget with final numbers.

Ending: Staff asked for council direction so they could produce the manager's proposed budget in early May; several council members asked staff to continue looking for additional revenue and to present options that would limit the near-term tax-rate increase while advancing living-wage goals.","City staff recommended a hybrid compensation option that would move the most employees above the local living wage, reducing the number of employees below the threshold from about 151 to roughly 84; the recommendation would increase the property tax rate unless one-time FEMA loan funds are used.",{"_33":100,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":101,"_41":102,"_43":103,"_45":104,"_47":105,"_49":106,"_51":107,"_53":108,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":109,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":110,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6085726,"Council hears public-safety pay proposals: police career ladder and phased fourth-shift for fire",304,1363000,1667000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2902305-15623410dc637b6dadd1fa9f9d593fce&start=1363&end=1667","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2902305-15623410dc637b6dadd1fa9f9d593fce/thumbnail_1363000.jpg","/articles/6085726/Asheville-City/Buncombe-County/North-Carolina/Council-hears-public-safety-pay-proposals-police-career-ladder-and-phased-fourth-shift-for-fire","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6085726-a486a422c46cb8da99f39192558ed982/orig.mp4?Expires=1770440294&Signature=NYNTAEgG8Abg8uAGf3lySa1WLO~QcZnAC000Lry04D975DDZCQZm9Bw0uxJji3KQE6pdw9ULK6zapZnPaBz05UU~2q69Flu6xBfs3BxTrTy60cetcWSBUfgL6DAdvUfGwbLtAwKUd6E79mu9YhWXU1FA5Vao8FOD0LtsS9yDTwd7m89g3TGrQ~mgJttEAr4tTLzSJYjj5fpLnnhZRKhp3UV56WaV8Fklh0hkFYcxGtgBxaYjAkGV9LIf4UO9EAggsi8Ll~cQUpP5~8cTNhbldYh69eDUzdPK3t5wl3QFR8Hs9ycDOwaFREZ8t5ZeFb8QCXms793~EyD7PScgmAbgbw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Asheville City staff and the firefighters' association presented competing and complementary options for public-safety compensation at a budget work session, including a police move away from a step plan to a career-ladder structure and a firefighter proposal to add a fourth shift that would reduce individual work hours over time.

Lindsey Spangler and other staff described police's proposed change to a career ladder, which staff estimated would cost about $1.1 million in the first year to address pay compression and smaller amounts in later years as officers qualify for new steps. Spangler said the figures are preliminary and subject to change.

On the fire side, the firefighters' association proposed a phased fourth-shift plan that would ultimately add 86 firefighter positions over several years and reduce the standard work week from the current 56 hours to about 42 hours. Spangler said the full implementation cost for the proposal was estimated at roughly $6.3 million over six years, with an initial implementation cost for the first fiscal year of about $200,000 primarily for promotions and supervisory coverage. She said the association supported implementing the fourth shift rather than a full immediate pay-plan restructuring for this year.

Former Asheville Fire Chief Scott Burnett, speaking as a retired chief, told council that other North Carolina departments have adopted the four-shift model and that Waynesville and other communities are already recruiting Asheville firefighters. \"We lost firefighters already to these other communities,\" Burnett said, noting regional recruitment pressure from departments operating shorter schedules.

Staff outlined a compromise recommendation: set the fourth-shift structure in place next year with the $205,000 initial cost, then add four to five new firefighter positions in FY27 as part of the next budget to begin operationalizing the shift. Spangler said adding personnel gradually would reduce the number of unpaid or \"debit\" days that currently fill coverage gaps and, over time, would reduce hours worked and exposure to on-the-job hazards.

Concerns discussed included the fiscal pace of hiring (council members expressed concern about adding many full-time positions in a tight budget), potential morale effects for other departments if resources prioritize fire, and uncertainty over future overtime pay changes. Staff repeatedly emphasized the plan's long-term nature and implementation risk tied to property-tax impacts and overall fiscal conditions.

Ending: Council members generally supported moving toward the fourth-shift structure but said they wanted options for an accelerated or more gradual pace compared with the proposed five-year buildout, and several council members asked staff to model scenarios that would add a handful of firefighter positions in the current cycle if feasible.","City staff and firefighter representatives described proposals to move police and fire away from step pay plans toward career-ladder structures and to phase in a fourth shift for firefighters; staff recommended a phased approach beginning with a $205,000 structural change next year and additional hires in later years.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Asheville staff brief council on FEMA disaster loan, narrowing budget gap and tax implications

Council gets 5-year CIP preview and overview of FEMA public-assistance recovery projects

Staff recommends 3% hybrid pay increase to lift most city employees to living wage

Council hears public-safety pay proposals: police career ladder and phased fourth-shift for fire