Mitchell council reviews budget gap, moves to scale back some park projects while holding plaza decision

Mitchell City Council met in a work session to review remaining changes to the proposed 2026 budget and discussed options to close a roughly $598,077 shortfall in the general fund.

Council members and staff focused first on a previously discussed plaza project. Staff said the council’s earlier direction reduced the city’s proposed contribution to $750,000 from a larger earlier estimate; councilmembers reiterated that any final award would return for a future approval once the scope and potential donations or sponsorships were clearer. "It's literally just a dollar amount to finish the plaza," a staff member said during the discussion, adding the council would vote later on any final package.

The session then turned to parks and public-works items. Parks staff presented two separate electrical bids for Hitchcock Park items, including lighting for the stage and perimeter and the pool perimeter. Council members expressed concern about lighting an entire park that is typically closed at night; several members favored a phased approach that prioritized pool-perimeter lighting and power outlets for events over full-park illumination.

Council direction: members agreed to remove an identified line item for full park lighting this year and leave $8,500 (current budgeted amount) as-is, reducing a separate $1,000 placeholder. Staff and council discussed setting up rental fees or user-based fees to offset event-electric costs rather than funding the full system from the general fund.

On playground shade structures, council recalled previous direction to include shade when playground equipment is replaced and noted Geno Park was scheduled for equipment replacement next year that would include shade structures.

Several facility repairs and projects were discussed in the same session, including: - Hitchcock basketball courts and adjacent parking: staff presented options to resurface the basketball court in concrete rather than asphalt; concrete would increase the estimated 2025 cost to about $40,000 (a $31,000 net increase after rolling a currently budgeted $9,000 asphalt item into next year). - Hitchcock pool perimeter lighting: council discussed bids around $50,000–$75,000 and favored budgeting $60,000 to $65,000 to include contingency and minor design expenses while keeping the project under the formal bid threshold where possible. - Park equipment and shade structures were discussed as part of phased replacements; the council left those items on the tracked list for next-year implementation.

Budget balancing options: staff noted the council could reallocate money set aside for a $1.2 million lake project debt payment and other transfers, but emphasized that any such reallocation would require majority direction. Several members suggested reviewing the full list of previously highlighted changes, then applying any remaining available lake or reserve funds to close the gap rather than cutting existing agreed priorities immediately.

Next steps: staff will present updated budget pages showing the impacts of the council’s choices, and the council asked for additional detail on projects that were discussed so members could decide whether to include or defer them in the final 2026 budget.