Davenport parks staff outline FY27 budget kickoff, CIP priorities and enterprise fund status

At the October meeting of the Park and Recreation Advisory Board, Chad, parks department staff, outlined the department's operating-budget picture, a six-year capital improvement program (CIP) and the status of two enterprise funds as the city begins development of its FY 2027 budget.

Chad said the department's operating budget covers daily services such as employee expenses, supplies and capital outlay and is funded primarily by the general fund, grants and local sales tax. "Approximately 61% of the budget comes from the general fund and trust and agency fund," he said, adding that the department's operating budget shows about a $2,100,000 (roughly 6%) decrease compared with recent years because American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) dollars included in FY24 and FY25 have been spent.

Why it matters: the board will advise on park priorities while the citywide budget process moves through staff review and council budget workshops early next year; only the first year of the six-year CIP is funded when council adopts the budget.

Chad walked the board through the department's CIP list and project examples for FY26 and later years, noting the CIP is a six-year plan and only the first year is formally funded. He described recurring and one-time projects now in various stages: annual cemetery maintenance funded from local option sales tax (LST); Credit Island Park improvements tied to post-2019 flood funding and possible future master planning; Duck Creek Park…