If you’ve ever thought about showing up to a commission meeting, you should mark your calendar for next Monday as the city will vote on the final budget for the next fiscal year.
Everything will be on the table and City Manager Bill McDaniel will walk the community through a final presentation, laying out for the final time exactly how every penny of city funds will be used over the next year. Some departments are expected to see growth — PCPD and Code Enforcement among them — and the city is planning on finishing some massive projects.
“In the next meeting, we will have a formal presentation of the budget along with public hearings,” Mayor Rick Lott said. “It’s a blueprint of what we can accomplish over the next 12 months. I invite everyone to come out and see what we have in store and share their thoughts on the presentation. This is your last opportunity.”
The total budget alone has nearly $10,000,000 more than last fiscal year and the city is working with massive quantities of funds to distribute among its general fund and special projects. For the 2019-20 fiscal year, the city is working with $85,833,387, which includes $1,674,883 for the Community Redevelopment Agency.
Part of the funds increase for the city is thanks to the Transportation Referendum revenue, which adds $3.2 million to the budget. McDaniel said a strong economy also played a role in the new budget.
The funds the city allocates to groups like the Greater Plant City Chamber of Commerce, Bruton Memorial Library, Plant City Main Street and dozens of other entities, all are finalized in the upcoming meeting. The Plant City Economic Development Corporation also partners with the city to bring business and development to Plant City. In a thorough presentation last week, EDC President Jake Austin detailed the growth they’ve played a role in bringing to town over the past year.
“Everywhere in the city is developing,” Austin said. “There’s a lot of projects both underway and on the horizon.”
The Fire Department’s proposed budget was $6,508,841, with $500,000 allocated for a fire pumping apparatus and $400,000 allocated to renovate and upgrade Fire Station Two, which hasn’t seen repairs in years. PCPD’s 2019-20 fiscal year budget is $11,227,052, with a specific investment of $411,000 for 12 police vehicles. The budget finally allows for the addition of four police officers to the force, which has been a discussion years in the making.
This is the third and final time the city will discuss the budget: once in a workshop, once in a preliminary budget hearing and now in a final presentation and vote.
The city commission meeting is held at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 23 in the Sadye Gibbs Martin Auditorium at City Hall, 302 W. Reynolds St.