Aurora leaders cite audit shortfalls and cutbacks as council weighs future support for Paramount

City finance leaders on Aug. 12 told the Aurora City Council that the city faces tighter finances after reviewing the 2024 annual audit and related reports, and council members and public commenters debated proposed cuts to funding for the Aurora Civic Center Authority, which operates the Paramount Theater.

The audit presentation by Stacy Peterson, chief financial officer and city treasurer, flagged that the city received $35,200,000 in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds in 2021''2 and that most ARPA money was spent on ongoing operations; Peterson said the funds needed to be obligated by 2024 and spent by 2025. She told the council that expenditures for governmental activities rose by $25,900,000 (about 8.9 percent) between 2023 and 2024, and that long-term debt and general obligation bonds increased, with 2024 general obligation bonds totaling $205,200,000 and total general-obligation-related debt shown at roughly $327,000,000 as of 2025.

The audit also showed declines in several revenue categories in 2024: gaming receipts fell about 12.4 percent, food and beverage taxes dipped slightly, and hotel/motel taxes decreased about half a percent. Peterson said some tax increment financing (TIF) funds had negative balances because of accounting timing and expected to return to…