City budget hearing to be held tonight

Editor’s note: FY 21 runs from July 1, 2020, to June 30, 2021. FY 22 will be July 1, 2021, to June 30, 2022.

Creston City Council will hold a public forum and vote on its $20,426,523 budget proposal for fiscal year 2022 during its biweekly meeting 6 p.m. tonight via Zoom. The city expects a total of $20,501,508 in revenues to meet that budget.

The total expenditures and revenues for the city for FY 22 are expected to each increase approximately $2 million from FY 21. The increases are projected to result in a net increase in city fund balances by $75,025, bringing them to $15,046,854.

“Our main concern is that we don’t want to dip too much into our general fund balance so that we have something there in case of emergency and we obviously don’t want to raise our tax levy rate,” Mayor Gabe Carroll said.

Revenue

Total city property tax rates are down a fraction of a percent at 14.23842% compared to fiscal year 2021′s rate of14.23878%. The general levy remains unchanged at 8.1%.

Intergovernmental sources of revenue are expected to be up $612,266 through increased federal grants and reimbursements. Local option sales taxes are projected to create $50,000 more revenue in FY 22, totaling $900,000.

Revenue from water utility is forecast to increase by $1.5 million, with the sewer utility down by $82,527.

Miscellaneous revenue is expected to be up by $42,066. This includes donations and reimbursements. According to Creston’s accounting manager Mandy Parsons, the collection of McKinley Park Aquatic Center pledges and additional grant funding is expected to be approximately $760,000 and the library capital improvement project donations are projected to be around $100,000.

The revenue from interest on funds held in the bank is projected to be down from $204,485 to $87,370. According to city administrator Mike Taylor and Parsons this is partly due to falling interest rates.

In total, the city expects an increase in revenue of $2,017,869.

Expenditures

The Creston Police Department budget is increased by $22,396 for FY 22, with the Creston Fire Department’s budget increasing by $47,907. Taylor explained the additions as salary increases as well as money towards the CFD’s new training facility and a new vehicle for the police department that was partially funded through a grant.

“Other public safety” budget shows a decrease of $30,000 after the completion of purchasing a shooting simulator for the police department in FY 21.

The total public safety budget is $2,027,694, a $45,709 increase.

The public works budget remains largely unchanged from FY 21 with the exception of the airport, which is funded 90% with federal dollars. The $1.5 million increase in the airport budget is offset by the increase in federal grants.

Expenses for the Parks and Rec department are down $45,000 due to equipment funded and purchased in FY 21.

A decrease in the budget for the Clerk, Treasurer, and Finance Adm. category is due to the timing of grants that are ending, Taylor said.

The capital projects budget changes depending on the projects planned for the year. The Sycamore Street bridge project plays into the $553,342 budget for FY 22.

Water utility expenses are expected to increase by $1.5 million to $5,762,400 with sewer utility costs decreasing by $90,438 — matching the expected revenues from the utilities.

Total expenses are projected to increase by $2,004,286.

The full proposed budget may be viewed at https://tinyurl.com/creston3-2-21.

Members of the public may speak during the public hearing tonight via Zoom or contact city hall at 641-782-2000 to express concerns or support for the proposed budget.

To join the Zoom meeting visit https://bit.ly/3rKe56i, or dial 1-312-626-6799. Meeting ID: 839 4135 9216, passcode: 515963.