Shorewood finance committee says Q1 shows no surprises; discusses ARPA status, capital plan and permit slowdown

The Shorewood Business and Finance Committee reviewed first-quarter financial statements and discussed near-term capital planning and grant reporting during a meeting called to order at about 6:30 p.m.

Committee members said the quarter showed no unexpected variances but flagged items that are “front loaded,” noted the status of ARPA funds, and pressed staff for clearer capital-accounting and a proposed policy for large equipment purchases.

Committee chair: The most immediate point was that first-quarter results reflect timing rather than performance. “There’s not much to report,” the committee chair said, adding that many line items — insurance premiums and subscriptions among them — are front loaded and therefore show high percentage figures in the packet even though only 25% of the year has passed.

Why it matters: The committee asked staff to provide clearer documentation of restricted and assigned fund balances each quarter — particularly ARPA balances — and to present a capital-expenditure funding model for board review this summer so the committee can plan for 2026 budget decisions.

Key facts and discussion: Committee members and finance staff described the Q1 review process as routine: staff run the statements after journal entries are complete, review them with department heads, and follow up on anything that looks unusual. Staff said they would examine the general ledger for anomalies and return with more detail if needed.

ARPA reporting: A committee member noted the packet’s restricted fund balances and asked whether ARPA expenditures remain. Finance staff said they plan to spend a portion of available ARPA funds but could not confirm in the meeting whether any ARPA expenditures remain outstanding; staff committed to provide a follow-up answer the next day. A committee member said the village is required to report ARPA status by the 30th of the month and asked staff to include that status in future quarterly updates.

Capital items: The committee discussed several capital-line items shown in the packet. Members identified one line labeled “bucket truck” totaling $274,000 and confirmed the vehicle has been received and is in the municipal garage; staff said that accounting treatment will move that cost into the 2023 column or be removed from the 2024 assigned balances in the next report. Members asked staff to stop carrying ambiguous red-line items forward and to clarify whether red means an expenditure, a negative subtotal, or an item that did not carry forward.

Capital policy timeline: Staff said they will present a proposed model for funding large equipment and vehicle replacements to the board in June and will work with department heads over the next six weeks to define reasonable useful-life assumptions and funding needs. Committee members asked staff to consider post‑COVID supply delays and longer lead times when recommending useful-life thresholds (for example, whether the traditional 5–7 year replacement windows still apply).

Permits and revenues: The committee also asked about lower-than-expected permit revenues across building, electrical and plumbing categories. Staff and a department head said renovation permits are down and that the trend appears to be driven by broader economic uncertainty rather than a local issue: “We are seeing this across other communities as well,” a staff speaker said.

Other timeline notes: Finance staff said the 2025 budget has already been appropriated; the next capital-planning discussion is for 2026 budget preparation this summer. Staff also noted a hot-patch trailer replaced in 2023 and several 2022 line items that were spent and thus did not carry forward.

Ending: Committee members asked staff to return with clarified ARPA balances, a cleaned-up assigned fund-balance schedule (removing or reformatting red-line carryforwards), and the proposed capital-expenditure policy for board-level consideration in June.