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Committee approves short interfund advance to unlock state grant for West Ferry Lift Bridge project
Summary
The finance committee agreed Jan. 2025 to send forward an interfund loan request that would advance roughly $95,000 so the city can accept a $700,000 state transportation grant for work at the West Ferry Lift Bridge; council members asked for more accounting detail on the interfund balance before final approval.
The Buffalo City Committee on Finance on Jan. 2025 moved to send an interfund loan request forward so the city can accept a state Department of Transportation grant for work at the West Ferry Lift Bridge.
Acting Commissioner of Administration and Finance Raymore Nosworthy told the committee the DOT grant totals $700,000 but the city needs an upfront encumbrance of about $95,000 to proceed and secure the reimbursement grant funds. "There's just $95,000 needed, to be encumbered upfront in order to move forward with the project," Nosworthy said.
Council members asked where the $95,000 would come from and whether the interfund balance could support the advance. "That amount of money is very negligible, and in order to get this moving forward will be found within this week," Nosworthy said, adding the advance would be executed as an interfund loan rather than a transfer from a specific departmental account. He explained the interfund balance is managed by the controller's office: "It's an interfund loan ... it's coming out of that balance of cash."
Several council members requested more documentation on the interfund loan balance before final action. Councilmember Wyatt asked to "see the detail, the balance behind the interfund loan account," citing prior large interfund moves and saying he didn't recall a recent report on that account. Nosworthy said he would provide that detail and that the controller's office had signed off on the request.
The committee moved the item forward "without recommendation" so staff can provide the requested accounting before the council considers final approval.
What happens next: the administration will supply the interfund-accounting details requested by council members; the loan is an internal advance intended to be reimbursed by the DOT grant when project invoices are paid.
Votes/steps taken: committee motioned to send the item without recommendation to allow information gathering; the motion was seconded and carried in committee.
