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City manager proposes FY27 budget, recommends 1.5-cent real-estate tax cut and new positions
Summary
City Manager Carl presented the proposed FY27 city budget, recommended a 1.5-cent reduction in the real-estate tax rate (from $1.395 to $1.38 per $100 assessed value), outlined debt-reduction progress, proposed targeted new staff and a developer-focused technology fee, and urged waiting on enterprise-rate changes until water/sewer rate-study results are available.
City Manager Carl presented the city's proposed FY27 budget to the governing body on April 7, describing assumptions, revenue forecasts and a slate of recommended program and personnel actions. The manager recommended reducing the real-estate tax rate by 1.5 cents (stated in the presentation as a move from $1.395 to $1.38 per $100 of assessed value), holding other general-fund revenues steady, and maintaining a 15% operating reserve.
Carl highlighted two structural fiscal developments: long-term debt has fallen from a peak near $90 million to under $50 million today, and economic-development revenue (including sales tax) has grown substantially, with sales-tax receipts projected at about $3 million for 2027. The manager said those trends are creating flexibility for modest tax reductions and targeted investments.
On enterprise funds, the manager recommended no immediate rate changes pending the completion of a water and sewer rate study; he said the study may show administrative-overhead adjustments that would improve fund viability. He also noted the Patriot solid-waste contract is approaching renewal and suggested coordinating service changes with the comprehensive-plan update.
The manager proposed modest new personnel and program investments (net new personnel cost ~ $422,000, with some grant offsets) including an enterprise-systems administrator for the ERP implementation, an emergency-management program coordinator, an assistant program manager in streets/transportation, a part-time building inspector, and a deputy police chief (reclassifying a captain to a major). He also proposed program items such as CTE interns and a technology fee aimed at development activity to fund IT and administrative services tied to major permitting and projects.
The presentation included a 10-year outlook illustrating projected unassigned fund balance and the long-term impact of the recommended investments; the manager stressed conservative assumptions and a goal of underbudgeting revenues by 5% and underspending by 5% to create ongoing fiscal margin. He set a schedule for next steps: department hearings, Planning Commission CIP review, rate-setting notices (May 5), a public hearing on the budget (June 2) and proposed adoption on June 16.
Council members asked questions about solid-waste contracting, the proposed technology fee's applicability to developers versus residents, and whether the forecast includes projected revenue from undeveloped projects such as a planned movie theater; the manager said the theater is not included in the forecast and cautioned that projections will be refined as more data arrive.
