Bartow Faces Tough Choices in Budget Talks

BARTOW | City commissioners in Bartow will face some tough budget decisions in coming weeks as they review the proposed $71.7 million spending plan for the 2008-09 fiscal year.

The budget includes a $160,000 decrease in property tax revenues, from $2.28 million to $2.12 million, and an $84,000 drop in building permits and $30,000 less in federal grants.

The slumping housing market is reflected in the city's impact fees for parks and recreation. Administrators budgeted $160,000 for the current year, but have sliced that to $80,000 for the fiscal year beginning Oct. 1.

The electric department is anticipating a $2.5 million increase in revenues, which will barely offset the projected $1.6 million increase in wholesale cost that the city pays to Progress Energy.

The general fund, including the police, fire, public works, parks and recreation, building and administration departments, is down $1.7 million, from $21.85 million to $20.11 million.

City Manager George Long presented the budget Monday. The bottom line, Long told commissioners in his overview letter, is a budget with few capital improvements, no new employees, no provision for employee raises and a warning that increased property taxes may be on the horizon.

The city has spent about $300,000 this year in legal and expert-witness fees to fight Republic Services' efforts to expand the Cedar Trail landfill to allow for Class 1 waste, including garbage from restaurants and shopping centers.

Long said he's projecting that total to increase to $500,000 by the end of the fiscal year in September, and that money is coming from the city's reserve accounts.

"We cannot continue to expend the reserves to the point of exhaustion," he said, "or we aren't going to be able to do business."

Funding for that litigation, along with the city's defense of other lawsuits related to zoning, is depleting the city's reserve fund, he said, and the proposed budget includes only $150,000 for legal fees next year.

"It should be increased by an additional $350,000, even if it is deemed necessary to increase property taxes to do so," he wrote to commissioners.

He also addressed the police department's budget, totaling $5.42 million, and referenced a pending offer by Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd to assume the city's law enforcement services for about $4.5 million per year.

"A decision to contract police and telecommunication services will reduce future costs by 10 percent or more, as well as significantly reducing liability exposure to the city," he wrote.

Long said city administrators and commissioners will review the budget in coming weeks, making revisions as they go along.

"The budget was prepared as a starting point for further discussions," he said. "It's proposed, but it's certainly tentative."

Long said he didn't include salary increases for employees, but commissioners may amend that.

"We do have money that pay adjustments could come from, if that's where we end up at the end of the budget reviews," he said.

The city currently is negotiating with the three unions representing the hourly employees, including the police, fire and general government workers. Those current contracts expire Sept. 30.

Included among the proposed capital improvements are:

$500,000 for a fire truck.

$295,500 for road paving.

$315,000 for two new solid waste trucks.

$727,000 for two trucks and upgrades to the city's electric distribution system.

$384,500 for 13 police vehicles and upgrades to the communications system.

Of the estimated $2.7 million in capital improvements, only $77,000 will be spent from the city's general fund. Another $857,500 will be financed, including the police cars and fire truck, and the balance will come from grants and restricted funds that are earmarked for certain projects.

[ Suzie Schottelkotte can be reached at suzie.schottelkotte@theledger.com or 863-533-9070. ]