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Wildwood council trims festival giveaways, sets Music on Main at $65,000 as budget work session continues
Summary
Wildwood council sets a $65,000 cap for the Music on Main concert series and eliminates city-paid free food while approving a 4.3% maximum salary-adjustment line and retaining a $31,000 legislative consultant line as it works to close a projected 2026 budget gap.
Wildwood — The City Council on Monday reviewed its proposed fiscal year 2026 operating budget and made several policy decisions aimed at narrowing a projected shortfall while preserving core services.
At the work session, city staff presented three views of next year’s budget: Option B, department-submitted requests; Option A, a balanced-but-austere version; and a third column showing Planning & Parks and committee-recommended adjustments. City Administrator Tom Lee told the council that revenue headwinds — notably declines in telephone gross-receipts taxes and cable franchise fees — combined with rising costs such as insurance and a 3% projected police wage increase, had reduced the city’s operating capacity and required trade-offs.
Council members debated several discretionary items. After discussion about the cost of giveaways and the…
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