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Redevelopment trims operating budget, shifts professional services to Commission and retains property carrying costs
Summary
Redevelopment Director Henry Mestatsky presented a reduced department budget for 2026, reporting that several professional services items were shifted to the Redevelopment Commission budget and that the department continues to hold and carry utilities and maintenance for city‑owned properties slated for redevelopment.
Henry Mestatsky, Carmel’s redevelopment director, presented the redevelopment department’s 2026 budget and told councilors that the department’s non‑personnel budget decreased compared with 2025, in part because professional services line items were moved to the Redevelopment Commission (CRC) budget.
Mestatsky said the department retains responsibility for carrying costs on city‑owned properties awaiting redevelopment — for example, the former Old Town/Presidium site and the Laser Flash/Winter Farmers Market building — and that the department pays utilities and other costs to keep properties maintained and ready for development. He described a standing arrangement with the farmers market that the redevelopment commission pays $1,300 per month for utilities and the market pays amounts above that threshold.
The proposed 2026 budget reduces travel and training and moves multiple contract and professional fees to the CRC to reflect where work will be funded and to reduce the redevelopment department’s operating budget for 2026. Mestatsky said five staff work in redevelopment and there were no vacancies at the time of the presentation.
Councilors asked about the reallocation of legal and design fees to the CRC and about travel and conference reductions; Mestatsky said reductions were intentional and tied to council direction to minimize non‑essential travel and shift costs where appropriate.
Mestatsky summarized that excluding personnel the department’s non‑personnel spending would decrease by roughly 41 percent from the prior year and said he planned to return with ongoing updates on property holdings and project timelines.
