Gainesville residents will have the chance to sound off about the city’s budget for next year at Tuesday’s City Council meeting.
The $31.96 million budget for the 2020 fiscal year, which begins July 1, is about 2 percent higher than the current spending plan, but it will include a full rollback of the mileage rate to account for increases for property reassessments.
City Manager Bryan Lackey presented the budget to the City Council during a work session Thursday morning at the city administration building. He told the council that the city’s millage rate would drop from 3.364 mills to 3.322 mills, a drop of 0.042 mills, which is the same amount the tax digest increased because of re-evaluations of property values.
“We are moving forward and are happy we’re keeping our tax rates low,” Mayor Danny Dunagan said.
A public hearing will be held at 6 p.m. Tuesday so the residents can comment on the budget. The meeting will be held at the Public Safety Complex on Queen City Parkway. The budget will be adopted at 5:30 p.m. June 18.
To help residents learn more about the city’s budget and finances, a website has been created. Click here to view it.
The city’s revenue base is broad, Lackey said, noting that property taxes account for only 12 percent of the city’s budget. Revenues are up across the board, including a 13 percent increase in the TAVT, the tax of the sale of vehicles.
“We’re not overly dependent on one area for funding,” he said. “If we have a decrease in one revenue source, it won’t affect us as bad.”
The proposed budget includes more police activity in the Park Hill Drive area. A study began last year focused on traffic, but because of an increase in crime, the city has decided to expand to a full corridor study. Lackey said Carl Vinson Institute of Government at the University of Georgia will develop a master plan using extensive community input. The Vinson Institute previously developed the city’s midtown master plan.
The budget will include $31.5 million in capital improvements, including the purchase of additional police cars, more money for the construction of a new Fire Station #2 and improvements at Lake Lanier Olympic Park, which the city is taking over from the county. The city also plans to extend sewer service along a stretch of Athens Highway and construct a skate park on Pine Street near the Midtown Greenway. The park has already been designed and permitted, and impact fees from the parks and recreation department are paying for it. Construction bids are being received for the Highlands to Islands Trail connection between the Midtown Greenway and Chicopee Woods.
Funding is also provided for design work for a parking deck that will eventually be built on Brenau Avenue at the site of the old Turner, Wood & Smith Insurance building. The Hall County Library is currently using that building while the main library building across the street is being renovated. When the library construction is finished, work will begin on the deck, possibly as early as summer 2020.
The city is also purchasing a brine maker and truck, which will be used by the city during wintery conditions.
Lackey also discussed the city’s plans for SPLOST VIII, which voters will be asked to approve in November. The city’s portion of the extended SPLOST is about $35 million over six years and will pay for road improvements, public safety, parks and leisure and construction of the new deck. A exact list of projects will be determined later.
