Wimberley reviews preliminary FY2025–26 budget; community center moved into parks fund

Wimberley City Council met in a special session July 17 to review staff’s preliminary FY2025–26 budget, proposed fee schedule changes and a set of council goals. Mayor Jim Charles opened the 4 p.m. meeting; City staff member Mister Patek led the budget presentation.

The presentation proposed moving the community center budget from the general fund into the parks fund, increasing retirement contributions for full‑time employees from 5% to 6% and including a 3% cost‑of‑living adjustment for full‑time staff. Patek said, “we think we’ve come up with a very outside the box kind of thinking budget this year,” and noted the proposal is “contingent on our fee schedule being increased.”

City leaders said the draft budget shows lower total general‑fund revenue for FY2025–26 compared with FY2023–24, largely because the community center line items were moved into parks and certain one‑time grant income from the prior period is not repeated. Staff told the council that a GLO grant and other one‑time receipts accounted for much of the prior period’s higher total. Council members pressed staff for clearer line‑item reconciliation and asked staff to return with full month‑end numbers for easier annualization.

Most significant budget details and staff proposals

- Fees and Blue Hole (swim area): Staff proposed a roughly $10 across‑the‑board increase for many community center fees and specific…