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Galveston, park board move toward new interlocal, but HOT fee and reserves remain unresolved
Summary
City and Park Board staff presented a draft interlocal and a proposed FY26 Park Board budget; staff recommend approving the Park Board budget for two quarters while city and trustees resolve a $513,000 shortfall caused by a city administrative fee and other transitions.
City staff and Park Board trustees presented a draft interlocal agreement and the Park Board's proposed FY2026 budget to the Galveston City Council on Aug. 14, laying out how the city will collect hotel-occupancy tax (HOT) starting Oct. 1 and how Seawall-area parks and related services will transfer from the Park Board to city management.
City Finance Director Sheila Laddani said the Park Board's FY26 HOT revenue projection is $19.2 million and the city is budgeting additional non-HOT payments to the Park Board of about $2.3 million for services such as seawall maintenance. Laddani said those figures and a recent recalculation of the certified property tax roll produced an unexpected $449,340 drop in general‑fund property‑tax revenue, leaving a roughly $513,000 gap between the Park Board budget and the city's administrative fee on HOT collections.
The draft inter…
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