City’s 2012-2013 Budget Established

by Lisa Wilbourne

In the June 14 meeting, City Council adopted the fiscal year 2012-2013 budget as recommended by staff with the following additions from Councilmember Max Joyner:

• Additional $50,000 for lighting study;
• Additional $25,000 to help support Uptown Greenville’s economic development efforts;
• $11.75/month sanitation rate for curbside and multi-family; $40.80/month for backyard service;
• 2.5% pay raise for city employees;
• Pay raises for council members: $100/month—Council Members; $150/month—Mayor Pro-Tem;  $200/month—Mayor.

The pay raise for City Council members was the only issue that brought forth discussion on passing the $114 million budget. Unwilling to vote on a pay raise for himself, Councilmember Calvin Mercer said he was concerned that this was not brought up sooner and open to a public hearing.

Councilmember Dennis Mitchell supported the pay raise, praising the council for creating a budget that doesn’t raise the tax rate—“a good thing,” he said, “for people and businesses.”

Joyner declared he was not the right man for the job if the city’s residents didn’t see him as worth an additional $100/month.

All but Mercer voted for the budget with Joyner’s additions.

Council also passed a budget plan for the 2013-2014 fiscal year with similar additions from Joyner, including an additional $100,000 for public safety.

Recreation and Parks Project Prioritization

Stemming from Councilmember Marion Blackburn’s failed attempt (EDIT: please see comment below for clarification on this matter from Councilmember Blackburn) to include a new floor for the Jaycee Park Auditorium and a paint job for bathrooms at the Aquatics and Fitness Center, at the request of Councilmember Mitchell, Recreation and Parks Director Gary Fenton agreed to create a list prioritizing projects in the $20-50,000 range. 

Coming up for the city–Redevelopment Commission Update

Senior Planner Carl Rees presented three projects the Redevelopment Commission is working on.

• Creating of a parking deck in the center city. Site analysis is planned to begin in August with a funding presentation planned for January. Construction could begin as soon as April 2013 and would take approximately 6-8 months.
• Placing a small-business incubator in West Greenville. This project had been considered in the past, but was not well-supported. The Minority Business Roundtable has recently taken an active role in creating a steering committee for the incubator geared towards promoting trades and work-force development, including pairing unemployed residents with new businesses.
• Moving forward with Dickinson Streetscape Design plans. This would require using $150,000 from center-city bond money.

Council unanimously approved the use of bond money for the Dickenson Streetscape Project and the 2012-2013 Redevelopment Commission work plan.

3-Unrelated

In light of the public hearings and possible changes to occupancy standards, Councilmember Marion Blackburn requested a report for the August meeting on the historical reasons the city decided on a definition of family as no more than three-unrelated persons.

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