Grace Kirchner, Leader Correspondent
After months of discussion, the Clintonville Common Council this week approved asking department heads to collectively cut $47,000 from the budget over the next year.
As recommended by interim City Administrator Chuck Kell, each department will cut the same percentage of its budget.
The cuts, by department, are police, $19,269; public works, $12,280; general government, $7,336; parks and recreation, $5,335; fire, $2,780.
Faced with a budget deficit, the council opted in November to use $176,000 of its fund balance to balance the budget. With the action this week, the city will use $129,000 of the fund balance for its operations in 2015.
The vote was was 7-2, with Aldermen John Wilson and Bill Zeinert voting no. Alderman Phil Rath was absent.
In a memo, Kell said the city’s healthy fund balance is due to the exceptional job the department heads have done over the years to keep costs down.
“The fund balance would still be very healthy, even with the amount taken out for 2015,” Kell stated in the memo. “Cutting services further is detrimental to the safety of the community.”
The council did not decide whether to close the city’s outdoor pool or former armory, which houses the park and recreation offices.
“The department heads have a tough job to make the cuts and how it will impact services,” said Alderman Mark Doornink, chairman of the city’s finance committee. “We are making an effort to get some facts to make a decision on the pool to keep it open or not with facts and not emotion, and it is similar for a decision on the armory.”
Finance Committee members earlier this month directed park and recreation director Justin McCuly to form an ad hoc pool committee, to be approved by the council, to study the pool options and present a recommendation to the council by June.
McCuly was also told to gather information on the recreation center, housed in the former armory. The finance committee wants to know what it would take to keep the building usable, what would it cost to close it and other options.
The council also learned Tuesday that the Graceland Cemetery had sufficient funds, and the city will not need to take over cemetery operations in the near future. The city gives the cemetery $17,000 a year.
Kell said the city also is getting new revenue this year with a new crop lease and logging revenue at the airport.