City manager presents $2 billion FY2026 spending plan, highlights public safety, schools and coastal project

City Manager Patrick Roberts presented the proposed fiscal year 2026 operating budget and five-year capital improvements plan to the Norfolk City Council on March 25, proposing a consolidated financial plan just under $2 billion and asking council to adopt the final budget May 13.

Roberts said the General Fund, the city’s primary operating fund, totals just under $1.2 billion in combined revenues and expenditures for FY2026 and that the first year of the capital improvements plan (CIP) requests about $260 million. "I want to reiterate often that this is a plan, not a budget," Roberts said, describing the CIP as a five-year roadmap with only year-one expenditures requested for funding.

The nut graf: The manager outlined major focus areas — public safety and health, transportation safety and maintenance, housing and neighborhood revitalization, beach and tourism investments, and increased support for Norfolk Public Schools — and identified specific proposals that would require council approval during the April hearings and May adoption.

Roberts walked the council through revenue assumptions and drivers. He said the city is forecasting roughly 4.4% growth in general fund revenue (about $38 million), driven primarily by rising real property values and strong consumption and sales tax receipts; personal property collections were described as flat or slightly down. Roberts cautioned that operating costs — especially labor — remain elevated amid low regional unemployment and flagged uncertainty tied to federal spending and trade activity.

On public safety and health, the manager proposed adding 20 paramedic positions and three captains in Fire & Rescue, purchasing one…