While not finalized, the Hailey budget had its ceiling set at just over $11 million when City Council members voted to adopt this as the "not-to-exceed" amount at their meeting on Monday, July 23.
Hailey City Clerk Heather Dawson said this figure can not be exceeded when the council holds a public meeting on Monday, August 13, to finalize the budget for the 2007-2008 fiscal year. However, the council still has the ability to either decrease the budget or shift funds "laterally" for different uses than have been planned to date.
"This is the best budget we've put together," Hailey Mayor Susan McBryant said. "This is due to Local Option Tax revenue to a certain degree."
McBryant said she is most excited about a $30,000 contribution to public transportation in return for which the city will receive a number of bus passes for staff, thus helping cut down on car trips within the city and forwarding the goals of the Hailey Climate Protection Committee.
Dawson said this contribution will come out of LOT funds, but otherwise the expenses for this particular tax revenue will go toward the same areas as last year, including street improvements and money for additional police officers.
Cuts for the upcoming fiscal year came in the form of deletion of an associate planner position, which was never filled after being budgeted last year, and a decrease in the amount budgeted for snow-removal, as that was over-funded in 2007.
Citizens are encouraged to attend the August meeting and provide input as to the council's budgetary decisions.
In other Hailey news:
· The City Council voted to amend the city's zoning ordinance, allowing the Planning and Zoning Commission the discretion to give developers of community housing an extension of up to 18 months to pull a building permit after receiving design approval.
Previously, developers could apply for a six-month extension to the standard 12-month period they have to pull a building permit.
· Mary Ann Mix, a Croy Canyon Ranch Foundation board member, discussed the possibility of extending city water services to the proposed elder care facility in Croy Canyon with City Council members. The foundation is hoping to apply for an Idaho Community Development Block Grant to help pay for a portion of the estimated $700,000 cost.
While city officials agreed that this was a "worthy cause," they expressed concern over the city's current low supply of water and said they had to look after the welfare of existing residents first before agreeing to the project.
McBryant said the council will take some time and look for some kind of creative solution to the problem.
· Hailey resident Jon Marvel expressed his displeasure that the city granted the school district an encroachment permit, allowing the district to build a new sidewalk 35 feet into the city's right-of-way.
He said he was angry at the lack of landscaping, saying it does not fit with the design guidelines set forth in the Old Town District overlay.
While City Attorney Ned Williamson said he could not legally ask the district to remove the sidewalk, which is already partially built, he would devise a method for reviewing any applications for encroachment permits within the overlay in question.
