Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the County Budget topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Greenlee County supervisors direct staff on FY27 revenue assumptions and prioritize courthouse repairs and fairgrounds work
Summary
At a budget work session the board asked staff to build FY27 revenue projections on conservative sales‑tax assumptions, requested models for a 4% wage scenario, and approved adding courthouse plumbing/HVAC evaluations, fairgrounds build‑out and landfill cell planning to top capital priorities.
County finance and management staff led a lengthy budget work session that covered FY27 revenue assumptions, compensation modeling and capital improvement priorities.
Staff asked the board to assume PILT of about $1.5 million, primary property‑tax revenues around $3.7–3.8 million and to set county half‑cent sales‑tax projection at $1.44 million. For state shared sales tax, staff recommended modeling $500,000 per month as a conservative baseline; supervisors agreed with that peg for planning.
On compensation, staff noted that each 1% in across‑the‑board wages costs roughly $100,000 ongoing. Supervisors asked staff to prepare scenarios and directed finance to model a 4% baseline increase in the budget worksheets so the board could compare options before final decisions.
Staff reviewed Tier 1 capital projects and proposed additions. Top priorities confirmed for near‑term attention include:
- Fairgrounds: finish design/build of the fourth quadrant (restrooms/concessions, splash pad and playground) and complete field work already under contract; staff said restrooms and basic infrastructure are the highest near‑term priorities. - Loma Linda Park: complete ball‑field work, add fencing and irrigation and use cameras and fiber connections to document use and deter vandalism. - Courthouse: add an evaluation (and possible replumb/replacement) of aging potable and HVAC water systems in the Clifton Annex building and plan exterior painting, lighting and shading improvements for the historic courthouse; staff characterized the plumbing/HVAC issue as potentially urgent and recommended outside professional evaluation. - Landfill: engineering and digging for the next C&D cell are scheduled for FY27 and staff proposed funding the dig from a soils‑project set‑aside rather than the general budget.
Staff noted that several Tier 2 items (crow's‑nest boxes, horse stalls) are lower cost and can be scheduled after Tier 1 projects. The board directed staff to add the courthouse plumbing/HVAC evaluation and necessary courthouse improvements to the Tier 1 list and to return cost estimates for board review.
The session closed with agreement to schedule budget work sessions in late April and through May to resolve remaining items and finalize the FY27 budget.
