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Council approves second amendment to Thornton's 2025 budget to fund solar, trail design, cameras and grants
Summary
The council approved an ordinance on first reading adopting a second amendment to the 2025 budget that adds appropriations for several projects including solar at the Water Treatment Plant, CDBG annual action plan funding, body‑worn cameras, a CDOT-funded traffic signal and Big Dry Creek Trail design.
The Thornton City Council approved an ordinance (first reading) adopting the second amendment to the 2025 budget that appropriates funds for six items across city funds.
Budget and operations director Erica Casonah presented the amendment and detailed each appropriation. The amendment includes: $66,000 in the General Fund to cover additional traffic enforcement funded entirely by a CDOT traffic safety grant; $811,771 in the Governmental Capital Fund to implement the 2025 Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) annual action plan (affordable housing, homelessness services and program administration); $25,676 in the General Fund for six additional body‑worn cameras, funded with federal forfeiture funds; $2,498,366 from Unappropriated Funds in the Water Fund to construct solar improvements at the Thornton Water Treatment Plant; $230,000 in the Governmental Capital Fund (90% CDOT Highway Safety Improvement Program grant; 10% unappropriated fund balance) to complete a traffic signal installation at 100th Avenue and Fourth Avenue (Washington Plaza entrance); and $491,991 in the Parks and Open Space Fund to complete design and bidding for the Big Dry Creek Trail project (130 Sixth Avenue to 140 Fourth Avenue), 90% funded by CDOT funds allocated through DRCOG and 10% from fund balance.
Casonah said the solar project funding comes from the Water Fund's unappropriated balance and the trail and signal projects rely heavily on CDOT/DRCOG grant allocations. Council Member Martinez thanked staff for an earlier briefing and said the additional detail answered his questions. Council Member Unrein introduced the ordinance for first reading and asked for approval; the motion was seconded and the ordinance passed on first reading by unanimous vote.
The ordinance language specifies that appropriations for certain individual projects shall not lapse at year end but will continue until the project is completed or canceled. Staff said they will continue monitoring revenue and expenditures citywide and bring further budget recommendations in the 2026 process.
Key appropriation amounts and funding sources are itemized in the council packet and were read into the record during the meeting.
