By L. Parsons The Winslow City Council held a work session last week regarding the upcoming budget for fiscal year 2021-22. No action was taken during the session and the budget process will continue until July when the final budget is adopted by the council. Winslow City Manager John Barkley began the conversation by outlining the process for adopting the citywide budget. “In January, we begin the development phase of the budget while looking back on the previous year. We are now in the adoption stage through the rest of the spring. Then we will strategize on how to implement the approved budget toward the end of the fiscal year in June. The council will approve a tentative budget on June 2 and it will be ready for final adoption on July 13.” Barkley then explained the various funds kept by the City. “We have governmental, proprietor and enterprise funds. Enterprise funds are paid for primarily by the user and are designed to be self-sustaining.” Proprietary enterprise funds include the airport, water and wastewater and sanitation, they are financed and operated similar to private business, according to Barkley. “We do subsidize the sanitation fund from the general fund to the tune of $100,000 a year.” Grant funds have experienced a windfall this last fiscal year thanks to the CARES Act and American Rescue Plan among other, smaller grants. Barkley said, “We applied for and received block grant $270,000 for lighting improvements across the city and that will come around again for us to apply. We are standing on solid footing as we approach fiscal year 2022. We are projecting an actual of $8.3 million in revenues for 2021 and close to that for 2022. The grant funding that we received this year and will receive next year will help that.” Also in the discussion were capital improvement projects. Barkley explained those are funded by various sources including sales tax and state shared revenues. Both of which are likely to increase in the next fiscal year according to the first set of census numbers released. “Our census population estimate is 9,700 or 9,800,” Barkley said. “There are certain dynamics that come with that that we can’t always control. It could affect state shared tax and other revenue sources in positive ways. With added population also comes changes in our property values.” He went on to say that the city is looking to levy property tax at a rate of 1.625% per $100 of assessed value. This will mean a $2.67 increase in tax on property over $100,000 in assessed value. That levy will be discussed in a public hearing according to the Truth in Taxation laws in place. Public hearings on water and sewer rates will also be held before the adoption of the tentative budget in June. In part due to the city’s financial stability, and in part due to increased work load, many city departments are planning to add employees to their rosters. In fact, according to Barkley, 13 additional full-time employees will be hired in the next fiscal year. Some of those positions include a building inspector, a detective and an administrative assistant at the fire department and several labor jobs in the parks and streets departments. Councilmember Jim Maclean praised the public works department for adding additional workers. There will be employees added for and money budgeted for park maintenance including landscaping and restrooms. Maclean said upkeep of the parks is a priority of his, “And if we need to spend money on that, then I am all for spending money on that.” The largest park in terms of size and operating effort is the Desert View Cemetery. Winslow finance director Elias Jouen noted in a previous meeting that cemetery revenues in 2021 were up 98% over previous years. Based on proposed new language in the city fee schedule, that revenue stream may continue. Barkley said, “This new language distinguishes between Winslow residents and non-residents in terms of cost for burial. Non-residents will pay a $2,000 burial fee whereas residents will be around $800. The reasoning for this is the increasing cost of maintaining the cemetery as well as planning for the future. We have to look ahead here and see how we can build it out, it’s very expensive. For now, our mindset is to make city residents a priority.” Mayor Birdie Cano expressed disagreement toward the language and said, “I feel like this is a cash grab for no reason. Some of our county residents may feel like they are being left out and have to pay more. I understand what you’re saying about space but this is a delicate subject and not everyone is able to come up with $2,000 to bury their loved ones.” Jouen assured her the increase was, “In no way near making a profit, it is about maintaining the grounds and expanding the park.” The budget conversations will continue throughout the month, and modifications will be made according to department head and city council suggestions. The largest earmark of monies in the upcoming fiscal year are approximately $300,000 to build a splash pad near the outdoor pool on Colorado and Maple streets. The project, originally estimated to be completed this summer is currently being bid on. Other projects budgeted for fiscal year 2022 include library improvements, airport improvements and continued blight removal. The next regular meeting of the Winslow City Council will be held at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, May 11, in the Hubbell Building, located at 523 W. Second St.
