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Council reviews FY26 budget framework; disputes on CIP removals and park spending emerge
Summary
City staff presented the FY26 budget overview, strategic plan pillars and capital-improvement adjustments. Council debated removal of the police station and city hall expansion from the five-year CIP and sought more cost detail before committing to large projects.
City staff presented a draft fiscal-year-26 budget and two-year strategic plan at the April 14 Umbrash common-council work session, emphasizing a 0-based budgeting approach and the city's financial awards and ratings. Staff described revenue trends, personnel cost drivers and a set of capital improvements proposed over five years.
The strategic plan identifies three pillars (quality of life, outstanding service, community) and lists priorities ranging from public safety and infrastructure to parks, neighborhood services and economic development. Staff said the plan is intentionally high-level; department goals in the budget book will carry more specific actions.
Budget details presented included revenue estimates and reserve levels: sales tax budgeted at $16 million, general fund reserves around $13 million for fiscal stabilization, and projected personnel cost adjustments including COLA (2.3%) and a 3% merit pool for non-MOU employees. Staff noted GASB reporting changes affecting software capitalization and the influence of rising vendor subscription costs.
Several capital projects were adjusted in the proposed CIP. Notable changes: city hall expansion and police station expansion were removed from the five-year CIP after council direction, the neighborhood traffic-calming program was increased from $80,000 to $1,000,000, and park improvements were increased from $2,000,000 to $22,500,000 over five years. Council members pressed staff for specifics on several items: the First Avenue/Ventura water-main project (previously submitted for Maricopa County funding) was not funded in the latest grant round; staff said resubmission remains possible, and the estimated project cost is around $400,000. Staff flagged several CDBG applications that were not awarded.
A clear point of contention was the removal of the police station expansion and city-hall expansion from the CIP. Some council members said those projects remain necessary and urged staff to restore them to the five-year plan or at least conduct a police-station tour before final decisions; others said the majority had already decided to remove them from the immediate five-year CIP. Council members also asked for more complete cost estimates before approving any large expenditures and pushed staff to avoid piecemeal spending without a fuller plan.
Other budget highlights: a $100,000 allocation was set aside for downtown neighborhood-revitalization work (detailed separately); water/wastewater budgets reflect well repairs, pump replacements, and a possible WIFA loan; and the city will add proposed capital and carry-forwards into the tentative budget to be presented May 6. Staff recommended reinstating inadvertently removed items (court jail services) into non-departmental lines.
Next steps outlined by staff: present the tentative budget May 6 (including capital carry-forwards and any recommended increases such as a revised police training contribution), and adopt the final budget on May 20. Council requested additional details and cost breakdowns for major CIP items before final votes; staff agreed to return with the supporting numbers.
