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City presents preliminary Project Phoenix and sewer-fund budgets; council given review-only update
Summary
City staff provided a preliminary review of Project Phoenix downtown rehabilitation funds and sewer-fund projects (including a USGS study and a wastewater treatment project); staff flagged outstanding allocations, a possible $100,000 gap for the USGS study and said final budgets will be brought back for council approval before July 1.
City staff presented an informational, preliminary review of Project Phoenix (downtown rehabilitation) funds and special-fund capital projects and provided an update on sewer-fund planning and projected expenses for fiscal years 2025–26 and 2026–27.
Staff said roughly $185,000 in Project Phoenix funds remain open and noted specific earmarks: approximately $108,000 for a business-loan/low-interest program, roughly $29,000 for street furniture, $24,000 for city fixtures and $15,000 for public art at Freedom Plaza. A separate housing allocation of about $1.1 million was discussed; staff said $1.0 million had already been committed to a Milestone Housing project, leaving roughly $116,000 for other affordable-housing needs.
For sewer capital work, staff outlined a USGS (study) project estimated at about $2.3 million with roughly $2.2 million in grant funding identified (EPA plus $100,000 from the water district) and noted a possible $100,000 shortfall that may need to be filled. A package treatment-plant project was estimated at about $2.2 million and staff said the city is pursuing an EDA grant of roughly $1.7 million and that the city match requirement (20%) has been allocated in the proposed budgets. Operating expenses for the sewer system were projected at about $8.082 million for the period discussed, with general-fund support of about $70,000 and the remainder to be funded via collection fees tied to Freedom Plaza businesses and other sewer customers.
Staff said these were informational, preliminary figures and that all budgets must be approved prior to July 1; the general-fund budget was deferred to a subsequent meeting so staff can bring a fully revised set of budgets to council on June 10, with a possible follow-up on June 24 if needed.
Council members asked questions about CDBG-funded projects, timeline constraints on grant procurement, and whether CDBG could be used for blight removal and other priorities; staff said CDBG allocation is formula-driven by county processes and grant timelines can be tight. No action was taken; staff will return with final budget materials for council consideration before the fiscal-year start.
