Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Municipal Budget topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Boulder City Council begins FY2024/25 budget talks; EMT pay, fire equipment and water projects highlighted
Summary
At a May 5 budget workshop, department heads told the Boulder City Council about key costs for the coming fiscal year, including proposed modest EMT pay increases, a pool pump replacement estimate and anticipated expenses for a Water Project and wastewater plant repairs; council asked staff for payroll figures for the next workshop on June 9.
Boulder City Council members met with department heads on Monday, May 5 to begin work on the FY2024/2025 budget, hearing presentations on personnel costs, capital needs and routine maintenance across city departments.
Ambulance Director Molly Carey told the council that wages are the department's primary expense and said EMTs should be paid more than the current minimum-wage level. Council members indicated informal support to consider raising pay — suggesting EMT Advanced from $13 to $15, EMT Basic to $13 and drivers to $11 — but no formal motion or vote was recorded during the workshop.
Fire Chief Mike Hecht outlined several near-term equipment needs, including replacement radios and hoses, and said the department will need a new wildland engine within the next few years. In response, council members asked staff to plan for those purchases and for the City Clerk/Treasurer to set up a mechanism to save for them.
Council members asked City Clerk/Treasurer Rosemary Perna to begin a new capital-improvement plan (CIP) to set aside funds for equipment, saying existing CIP funds had not been receiving sufficient attention. The council emphasized the need for clearer tracking of CIP funds going forward.
Pool Manager Logan Leary reviewed routine operating costs (chemicals, snack program supplies and routine repairs) and said the pool pump needs replacement, estimating the cost between $3,500 and $5,000.
Public Works Director Dennis Wortman described the Water Project and repairs and maintenance at the wastewater treatment plant as the main expected expenditures for the coming fiscal year and noted ongoing workload across water, sewer, cemetery, parks and roads operations.
City Administrator Brian Bullock and City Clerk/Treasurer Rosemary Perna will prepare preliminary payroll expenditure figures and present them at the next budget workshop, scheduled for Monday, June 9 at 5:00 p.m. The workshop concluded at 6:34 p.m.
Note on record details: the meeting minutes header lists the workshop date as May 5, 2024, while an internal line in the minutes lists May 5, 2025; the council schedule announced at the meeting identifies the next workshop on June 9 (time specified). The minutes do not record any formal motions or votes on wage changes or capital expenditures.
