For the week of August 15 - 21, 2001

Bellevue council OKs budget topping $600,000

Public asked to respond at Aug. 23 meeting

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By PETER BOLTZ
Express Staff Writer

The Bellevue City Council almost didn’t get its proposed budget adopted Thursday night.

Almost.

With three council members missing from the meeting, the council was one member short of a quorum.

Councilman Dale Shappee was out of town, Councilman Wayne Douthit had been called away on a towing job and Councilwoman Joanna Ehrmantraut was home ill.

Adopting the proposed budget Thursday was critical, because it had to be published in the Wood River Journal for two weeks. The paper’s deadline was Friday, and because the city has chosen the Journal as its newspaper of record, no other paper would do.

Since the city was in a pinch, city administrator Jack Stoneback called in Ehrmantraut, who was suffering a migraine headache, and within minutes of her arrival, the proposed budget was adopted and approved for publication.

The budget, which anticipates expenses of $609,437, is a little more than $40,000 greater than last year’s budget.

Stoneback said just about all the increase came in salaries and benefits for his position as city administrator and a position of bookkeeper. Even though Stoneback has been working for the city since February, his job and the bookkeeping job are considered new items in the 2001-2002 budget.

The projected budget includes a 3 percent increase in pay for city employees and increased operating costs.

Stoneback said he increased the budget for electricity by 25 percent.

The mayor will earn $400 a month and council members $200 a month. Planning and zoning commissioners will be making $37.50 a meeting.

The next step for the proposed budget is a public hearing at the council’s Aug. 23 meeting at 7:15 p.m. Copies of the budget are available at the Bellevue City Hall.

Barring unforeseen events, the council will approve sending the budget to the county for its approval, after which the budget will go to the state for its approval.

The municipal fiscal year starts Oct. 1.

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