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Freeport manager outlines $1.3M reserve use for capital, trims vehicle and staffing plans
Summary
City Manager Boyer told the finance committee the 2026 budget will use about $1.3 million in reserves for capital projects (salt-shed replacement, tuckpointing, city yard upgrades), narrows insurance increases to 6.9% from a projected 16.1%, and removes a lobbyist contract while adding a grant writer; roughly $3 million of adjustments were cited
City Manager Boyer told the finance committee that the proposed 2026 budget incorporates a lower Equalized Assessed Value and several targeted changes to limit property-tax growth while funding needed capital work.
Boyer said the city plans to use $1,300,000 in fund reserves for capital investments, including replacing aging salt sheds, tuckpointing at City Hall and upgrades to the city yard. "We're seeking to use 1,300,000 in fund reserves to pay for capital investments such as replacing the salt shed, doing tuck pointing at city hall, and upgrading or working on the city yard's facility," Boyer said. He described negotiating insurance increases down from a projected 16.1% to about 6.9%.
The manager outlined department-level changes: the removal of a shared full-time position that had been to be shared among the clerk, HR and finance; modest increases for communications internship hours; AFSCME wage and fringe adjustments rolled into multiple departments; deferring vehicle purchases (reducing planned dump-truck acquisitions from three to one) and cutting some machinery and equipment line items. He said the city is replacing a contracted lobbyist with a grant writer to capture grant-writing work previously handled by the contractor and MSA Engineering, citing performance as the reason for not renewing the lobbyist contract.
Boyer estimated the net program reductions and reclassifications are on the order of several million dollars; when asked for a total, he said approximately $3,000,000 but noted some items were shifted into capital and would be funded from reserves. On the salt sheds at 1001 Island Avenue, Boyer said the pole-shed construction had deteriorated from salt exposure and the posts were rotting; the replacement is necessary to support winter operations.
Council members asked follow-up questions about overtime, the salt-shed cost breakdown and the lobbyist contract. Boyer confirmed the lobbyist had been under a 12-month contract and that nonrenewal was performance-related. Alderman Johnson expressed interest in continued work to reduce overtime costs in police and other departments.
Votes at a glance: The finance committee approved the meeting agenda (motion by Alderman Sellers, second by Alderman Johnson), approved the Nov. 3, 2025 minutes (motion by Alderman Sellers, second by Parker) and voted to adjourn at the end of the meeting.
