Shellmyer takes on budget

Washington City Councilor Bob Shellmyer gave a presentation about the city?s budget at the council?s meeting Wednesday. Shellmyer focused on the city?s departments that were over budget and stressed the need to reign in spending. City Administrator Brent Hinson said the numbers Shellmyer used in his presentation did not accurately reflect the city?s finances because they did not include the budget amendments approved in March and June.

Shellmyer showed the councilors a PowerPoint slide which included 10 city departments and how much over or under budget they were during the 2011-2012 fiscal year. The airport was the most over budget at about $219,000, followed by the police department at $123,000: clerk/treasurer ($64,000), parks ($30,000), fire ($15,000) and pool ($7,000).

Four city departments were under budget. Development services had a surplus of $51,000, followed by the cemetery ($48,000), library ($19,000) and street lighting ($10,000).

The city finished the 2011-2012 fiscal year with a budget deficit of about $320,000. Shellmyer said he was worried the city was on the same path after just one month into the 2012-2013 fiscal year. Shellmyer presented figures that showed the city was over budget for the month of July.

Hinson disapproved of Shellmyer?s presentation. He said the numbers Shellmyer presented were in a vacuum and out of context and that the city?s finances have been improving dramatically. Shellmyer said he was using the numbers he was given in the city?s monthly financial reports.

Councilor Mark Kendall said he appreciated that Shellmyer wanted to keep a close eye on the budget. He suggested that perhaps the numbers could be updated and presented at a later date.

Councilor Merlin Hagie said that Shellmyer should talk to Hinson or city accountant Joe Myers for an explanation of city finances before making a presentation to the council.

Councilor Bob Shepherd said the table in the presentation did not show any off setting revenues from the departments, such as the money the airport makes from fuel sales.

In other news, the council accepted the mayor?s appointments to the newly created cable commission. The cable commission members are Linda Soukup, Kevin Erpelding, Diana Hartmann, Matt Bryant and Roger Adams. The terms will be staggered so that not all five members are up for re-appointment at once. Soukup and Erpelding will serve two-year terms while Hartmann, Bryant and Adams will serve three-year terms.

Hagie talked about a series of parking changes he would like to see to city streets. He presented the council with a diagram showing parking places near intersections he would like to eliminate to increase visibility and to allow for easier turns. The spots include one outside the Washington Eye Care Center on North Second Avenue, one across the street to the east, four near the intersection of East Second Street and North Second and one on the southeast corner of the intersection of East Second and North Avenue B, which is just west of the dispatch center.

The council talked about the progress of the wellness park. Hinson sent a memorandum to the council in which he recommended the city enter into an agreement with the design firm, ?Confluence,? to research the watershed at the proposed site of the wellness park, which is in the northwest part of town. Confluence would also produce a 3-D image of the site. The council will consider the matter at its meeting next Wednesday.

Hinson said the city is negotiating a land swap with Duane Redlinger for land just south of the ?School 90? acres. Hinson said the city is proposing to swap the land acre-for-acre and that, if completed, the access to the wellness park would be from West Fifth Street.