City manager outlines FY26 budget timeline; planning board meeting March 11, preliminary budget March 17

City Manager Phil Kroll briefed the council on the FY26 budget schedule and planning steps, noting staff will present a manager’s recommendation that retains existing programs and reflects contract and utility cost increases.

Key dates and steps Kroll laid out include: the charter‑required meeting with the planning board on March 11 to review capital improvement projects; presentation of a five‑year CIP and the preliminary FY26 budget at a March 17 workshop; a March 30 CIP deadline under charter; a tentative special workshop March 31 (or April 7, depending on council preference); a first budget reading April 22 and second reading May 5. He said staff will bring a short list of additional priority items for council consideration—examples include extending the use of a third ambulance beyond the partial FY25 funding already budgeted—and that the manager’s proposed budget will assume existing programming unless the council directs otherwise.

Kroll said the presentation on March 17 will include full details and cost estimates for items not in the baseline and that key staff (including department directors and the superintendent) will attend to answer council questions. He also reminded councillors that if the council does not adopt a budget before June 30, the manager’s budget becomes the default.

Councilors asked whether departments would present “wish list” items; Kroll said the council had directed staff to hold existing programming and that new items will only be brought forward with appropriate staff present to explain costs and benefits. He confirmed that the CIP adoption on March 17 is adoption of the plan, not the specific year’s funding; the FY26 budget presentation will include hearings and the specific funding adoption.