Council briefed on $3.3 million budget opening including proposed purchase of 952 Childs Ave for recreation use

City finance staff presented a recommended budget opening at the Aug. 26 work session that would increase total appropriations by about $3.3 million across multiple funds and recognize several grant awards.

Justin Sorensen, finance staff, said the general fund would use $750,000 of fund balance in order to transfer $350,000 to the capital-improvement fund to purchase 952 Childs Avenue (a church building currently owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) for recreation programming, youth activities and neighborhood outreach. Sorensen said the proposed purchase is intended to support community programming and that the city would work with community partners to operate activities at the site. Councilors asked for more detail on terms and asked that the purchase discussion be scheduled when more council members are present.

The package also recognizes a state stormwater grant of about $158,000 for sewer and stormwater improvements near Lester Park and proposes $340,000 in the fleet fund to buy five marked police vehicles to ensure adequate reserve vehicles as staffing returns to budgeted levels; the general fund would additionally cover roughly $60,000 in lease charges associated with adding vehicles to the fleet. Sorensen said the city had earlier budgeted most of a state mitigation grant for personnel and program expenses; the final award exceeded initial estimates and the budget opening recognizes the remainder of the grant (the total mitigation award cited was about $4.3 million; the adopted budget had included roughly $2.9 million).