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Winter Springs staff brief committee on year-to-date finances and assessment-district review
Summary
Finance Director Holly Queen reported year-to-date actuals through Jan. 31, including balances and encumbrances; staff said NBS will handle the assessment-district review and that any proposed rate change would be presented to the city commission with a July 1 deadline for budget submission.
Holly Queen, finance director for the City of Winter Springs, presented year-to-date financials through Jan. 31 and outlined next steps for an assessment-district review that could affect future assessments. Queen said the packet showed actual expenses, encumbrances (outstanding purchase orders) and ending balances.
Queen reported specific figures for several categories: an ending balance of about $4,000 in the grounds line and an estimated ending balance of roughly $63,000 for landscaping after current purchase orders are accounted for. She said the city received a bid from NBS for administrative and legal services that was roughly $600 a year less than previous years. Queen identified a remaining budgeted item of about $40,000 for the assessment-district review and said she is negotiating a scope with NBS.
On the assessment process, Queen said NBS would both perform the review and oversee administration of the assessment district, including providing data to the tax collector and property appraiser. She said the assessment work must be submitted to the city commission by July 1; if timing prevents completion, staff will base the initial budget on current assessment estimates and make amendments later. Queen said staff may call a special meeting or working session if needed to review assessment calculations with committee members before finalization.
Committee members asked about utility and irrigation spikes in January and whether Duke Energy had proposed a rate increase; Queen said she did not have a definitive rate proposal on hand and would review account histories. She also confirmed that South Fountain expenses were covered by insurance, and that remaining assessment and budget timing constraints meant some landscape restorations were not covered in insurance and would have to be considered in assessment calculations.
The committee did not take formal action on assessment rates at the meeting; staff said they would return with more detailed cost estimates and a proposed assessment amount for committee review.
