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Interim finance director says FY25 ended strong; previews Police North Substation and PFAS study
Summary
Interim Director of Finance Spencer Slider told the council the city finished FY25 in a strong financial position, outlined 43 business items for FY26, and highlighted capital work including a Police North Substation on track for March 2027, a PFAS study at the Pierce Birch Water Plant, Payment Works vendor verification, and an enterprise vehicle lease pilot.
Spencer Slider, interim director of finance, presented the first-quarter update for the FY26 council priority to preserve financial stability and resilience, telling the council staff's work left the city in a strong financial position at the close of FY25.
"Council gave us directions, staff executed, and the end result is we were able to finish FY25 in a good strong place financially," Slider said.
Slider outlined 43 business items planned for the year and described major capital and operational work under way: a contractor has been chosen and construction is underway for the new Police North Substation, which remains on track for completion in March 2027; the City Office Tower near downtown is nearing completion and departments are moving back; the enterprise vehicle lease pilot has received phase-1 vehicles with phase-2 expected later in the fiscal year; and the Payment Works vendor verification/security integration is scheduled to go live in March to help guard against vendor‑payment fraud.
He also reported that the Northeast Library renovation (1905 Brown Boulevard) is almost complete and summarized other scorecard items: court revenues and traffic citation‑driven income increases, supplier payments moving to electronic processing to reduce fraud risk, curbside recycling tonnage meeting goals, and public works pothole repairs trending to targets. Slider said water’s meter changeout program is ahead of schedule with about 41% of annual installs completed in the first quarter.
On risk and procurement, Slider said staff are updating procurement policies and conducting a fleet cost‑driver analysis to reduce nonvendor‑covered maintenance. He also said the city is seeking a third‑party vendor to audit franchise fees with a report due at the end of the summer, and that an RFP for budget software integration with Workday is imminent.
Councilmembers had no substantive questions recorded during the presentation; Slider said staff would return with further details on programs and audits as they become available.
