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Community Development outlines cuts, tree mitigation rules and revenue tracking
Summary
Community Development staff reported $1.3 million in proposed reductions, maintained required tree maintenance spending to keep Tree City USA status, and explained tree mitigation revenue is held in a separate account and spent via council action.
Community Development staff presented the department's draft budget that shows roughly $1.3 million in reductions from the prior year. The director said some costs (tree maintenance, natural gas, telephone, software licensing) are effectively non‑reductions and together total about $378,594; after those non‑flexible items the available supplies and services budget would be narrow.
Staff explained tree mitigation payments from developers are recorded in a revenue account and held until the council approves release for planting or maintenance; the staff member stated the mitigation fee is set at "2 times the cost of the tree" to cover replacement and maintenance. Council members pressed for clarity on how revenues and encumbrances affect line items and asked for continued updates on land‑clearance encumbrances and potential late tax receipts.
