Although the East Lansing City Council hasn’t begun to slash away at the city’s 2001-02 budget, it is leaving the whole thing on the chopping block.
The city council continued discussion about ways to remove a $325,000 dip into the city’s general fund at its work session Tuesday.
The money shortage comes after a year of increased costs for health care, recreation facilities and low Census 2000 numbers.
City officials plan to contest the supposed 4,200 drop in East Lansing’s population that could have cost the city up to $1 million in funding.
City Manager Ted Staton reported that state funding would not be as low as expected, although budget problems remain from continued use of the city’s general fund.
“We’re a far cry from the worst case,” he said. “This is a pattern we need to reverse - stop the bleeding, if you will.”
With only two scheduled work sessions remaining before they attend to adopt the budget May 15, city staff and council members aren’t throwing away any ideas for finding the budget-balancing funds.
“If worst comes to worst, there isn’t anything that can’t be discussed,” Mayor Mark Meadows said. “I don’t think it’s wrong for us to tighten our belt.”
During the April 10 work session, council members brought up several ideas and questions about ways to gain additional revenue or cut costs.
By raising parking ticket fines from $10 to $15 for metered spaces, $15 to $20 for all other parking violations and raising parking ticket late fees by $5, the city can save $225,000, bringing the deficit down to $100,000.
Council members agreed that increase is likely.
The MSU Board of Trustees also raised parking ticket fees on campus by $5 for the first time since 1985 at its meeting Friday, bringing most parking fees up to $25 starting this summer.
“I do like the idea of raising parking fines to keep the pace with the university,” Mayor Pro Tem Beth Schwarze said.
The city council also will consider raising the price of parking fees in city lots and parking structures. The city council increased the cost of parking in lots and structures last July to save an estimated $65,000.
Although suggestions of raising property taxes, eliminating cable broadcast of public meetings and cutting from the fine arts fund were not popular among the council members, they will consider cutting costs from social service grants that fund community programs and reducing the city’s contingency fund from $50,000 to $25,000.
Funds for the East Lansing Police and Fire departments are in question too.
By leaving several positions at the police department unfilled following the retirement of employees, the city could save around $150,000.
Fire Chief Randy Talifarro said he would like the city to budget $75,000 for an assistant fire chief in the coming year. Although the position has been unfilled for several years, the need for the administrative position is surfacing again.
However, Talifarro said the alarms will continue to go off and the department will continue to respond to calls without the position filled.
“The policy makers, the training officers, the grant writing - all of that is absent or becomes the responsibility of the fire chief,” he said. “(Filling the position) would be a priority for me.”
