The Ketchum City Council unanimously adopted a budget for fiscal year 2009-10 that will reduce spending by $1.76 million, but still heard an earful from unhappy citizens during a meeting Tuesday night.
The $12.8 million budget, which will kick into action at the start of the fiscal year on Oct. 1, is a 12 percent reduction from this year's. And it almost triples the savings outlined in a proposed budget of $14 million released Aug. 7. However, "very little has changed" between the proposed and adopted budgets, said City Administrator Gary Marks, who created the budget. The drop of $1.2 million between the proposed and adopted budgets merely takes into account transfers among funds within the budget.
Not one citizen attending Tuesday night's public hearing came to give the council his or her praises for the $1.76 million budget reduction. Instead, they had much to complain about: The council members and mayor took a pay raise; city staff salaries shouldn't just be public but should also be published; the council waited too long to develop a budget, which made public hearings pointless; and other comments addressing spending here and there.
Council members were noticeably irritated by the negativity. Councilman Larry Helzel even said he was "astonished" that not one person commented on "the big picture."
"A 12 percent reduction year on year, that is the big picture," Helzel said. "Nobody brought this up, and I think this is an absolute shame."
Resident Anne Corrock did bring up that the council and mayor had given themselves raises this year, but was immediately met with chuckles from the front table.
"We took a 10 percent reduction," Councilman Baird Gourlay said. "I got a check right here."
It was explained that their paychecks show the 10 percent cut by way of a "contribution" back to the city.
But mayoral candidate Phyllis Shafran wasn't convinced, and raised the issue again.
This time, Councilman Charles Conn was the one to reply.
"For heaven's sake," Conn said, "the first thing we did when we got into economic troubles was take a pay cut."
In defense of the public's opposition to the budget, City Administrator Marks said that for the first time, the budget is comprehensible to a regular person and not just to bean counters. Even better, the budget has been balanced to keep the city in the black. The 2009-10 fiscal year will begin with a balance of $2.86 million and end with one of $2.09 million. That's being done even though the city will have $1.1 million less in resources than it had during the current fiscal year, when it had $17.4 million.
"We're in tough economic times," Marks said. "We're doing the best we can, and I think the budget does the best to our abilities."
Marks did somewhat acknowledge concerns from former Mayor Ed Simon and Shafran that not enough time was given for the public to have their say on the budget. The city's final budget hearing was held one day before it was due to be reported to Blaine County. Simon argued that public hearings should be held sooner so the council "can actually get public opinion" and make changes accordingly.
Marks said that he did start early, providing the first budget overview at a June 1 City Council meeting and then having public hearings along the way.
"I did start early, but I apologize and we'll make improvements next year," he said.
Gourlay told Marks not to apologize.
"I've been here eight years," Gourlay said, "and this is the smoothest it's gone."
Helzel agreed by saying that in tough economic times Marks managed to trim and simplify the budget.
"That was a monumental task," he said, adding that no one speaking at the public hearing commended Marks for the budget's $1.76 million cut.
That was when normally quiet Councilman Curtis Kemp spoke up.
"I absolutely agree with these (Helzel's) comments," he said. "And I have nothing further to say."
Trevon Milliard: trevon@mtexpress.com
URA adopts budget
The City Council also approved a 2009-10 budget for the Ketchum Urban Renewal Agency on Tuesday. The agency controls revenue and projects within a district established in 2006. Increases in property tax rolls that occur through new development or inflation within the urban renewal district go to the agency rather than to Blaine County.
Revenue of $496,384 is projected from the district for the upcoming year. When that's coupled with a beginning fund balance of $211,774, the agency will have $708,158 in resources for the fiscal year beginning Oct. 1. In the coming year, $255,238 of the agency's resources will be spent on paying back three outstanding loans totaling $5.5 million that have been refinanced.
"That would be the foremost priority at this time," said City Administrator Gary Marks. "
He doesn't see the URA undertaking any big projects until it's "on the other side of this refinance."
"That's essential to understanding the overall finances of the URA," Marks said.
The debts include a $1 million loan from former City Councilman Steve Shafran to help construct the first two phases of the Fourth Street project, $2 million from the Idaho Housing and Finance Association for the purchase of property at the corner of Second Street and Washington Avenue, and $2.56 million from Mountain West Bank for the purchase of the Sun Valley Road building that now houses the Sun Valley-Ketchum Chamber & Visitors Bureau.
