$1.3 Million Non-Budgeted Project
The City Council is prepared to adopt an ordinance funding a non-budgeted project that you may wish to address at an upcoming public hearing. The project is long overdue but moving forward with it at the present time has some consequences as well as benefits.
I am speaking about the expenditure of $960,000 to reconstruct the 104th avenue trail and landscaping from the western city limits to Huron Street. The landscaping plan calls for grass, a large number of trees and the supporting watering system.
Funding is slated to come from the elimination of previously budgeted projects in the Adams County Open Space Grant, Conservation Trust Fund and General Fund plus the utilization of $114,912 from the General Fund Reserve.
When the ordinance was approved on first reading last week, three members of the Council opposed moving forward with the project this year: Lindsey, Paiz and Clyne. Major reasons given were the fact that the project is not budgeted, its high water usage, additional maintenance and the diversion of money from budgeted projects.
The budgeted projects being eliminated are: from the Open Space Grant; the Recreation Center FFE: From the Conservation Trust; West Marketplace Landscape and lighting, an additional project at the Recreation Center and a $33,000 reduction from the Citywide Beautification program. From the General Fund; the development reserve for financial software, upgrade of the Croke Reservoir aeration, reduction in city beautification and work at the Croke Reservoir.
Councilmember Garner asked the staff much earlier this year to eliminate the eyesore along 104th avenue in response to requests from residents. I criticized the current condition of the area last fall as well. Unfortunately, the timing of the project and the cuts suggested by the staff from other projects leaves me opposed to moving forward at this time.
In order to sell the appropriation ordinance to the Council, the staff tossed two additional projects into the ordinance that are also not budgeted and in addition to the costs specified above. For improvements at Wyco add $254,014 and J.D. Cayton add $54,821. Hopefully the school district will be a position to defray some of those costs. The strategy worked and the majority of the Council is ready to move forward after the required public hearing that you will be able to attend if you choose. Its your choice.
I am speaking about the expenditure of $960,000 to reconstruct the 104th avenue trail and landscaping from the western city limits to Huron Street. The landscaping plan calls for grass, a large number of trees and the supporting watering system.
Funding is slated to come from the elimination of previously budgeted projects in the Adams County Open Space Grant, Conservation Trust Fund and General Fund plus the utilization of $114,912 from the General Fund Reserve.
When the ordinance was approved on first reading last week, three members of the Council opposed moving forward with the project this year: Lindsey, Paiz and Clyne. Major reasons given were the fact that the project is not budgeted, its high water usage, additional maintenance and the diversion of money from budgeted projects.
The budgeted projects being eliminated are: from the Open Space Grant; the Recreation Center FFE: From the Conservation Trust; West Marketplace Landscape and lighting, an additional project at the Recreation Center and a $33,000 reduction from the Citywide Beautification program. From the General Fund; the development reserve for financial software, upgrade of the Croke Reservoir aeration, reduction in city beautification and work at the Croke Reservoir.
Councilmember Garner asked the staff much earlier this year to eliminate the eyesore along 104th avenue in response to requests from residents. I criticized the current condition of the area last fall as well. Unfortunately, the timing of the project and the cuts suggested by the staff from other projects leaves me opposed to moving forward at this time.
In order to sell the appropriation ordinance to the Council, the staff tossed two additional projects into the ordinance that are also not budgeted and in addition to the costs specified above. For improvements at Wyco add $254,014 and J.D. Cayton add $54,821. Hopefully the school district will be a position to defray some of those costs. The strategy worked and the majority of the Council is ready to move forward after the required public hearing that you will be able to attend if you choose. Its your choice.
posted by Gene Wieneke at
4:24 PM
2 Comments:
Its amazing how you take things that you've complained about in the past and use it against staff when they are actually trying to address the issues...
Also, do you know what impact cancelling the other projects has? It seems this project is long overdue.
By
Anonymous, at 10:21 AM
Gene,
I appreciate your sentiments regarding non budgeted items. I know some people take these comments as negative and never satisfied but I feel what you are trying to show us all is that we have irresponsible people managing our city. It seems to me, in my limited experience of working as a municipal employee for 13 years and not in the city of NG, that taking monies from an open space grant intended for one project and then diverting to another project or projects in this case is a big no no. It shows that someone was not doing their job in forecasting and foreseeing their projects. I will try to go to the meeting. This really makes me wonder how Adams County has allowed this diversionary tactic and how our city council is not saying anything to stop this kind of irresponsible behavior. I smell politics on those added items. Maybe someone is up for re election?
CAT M.
By
Anonymous, at 11:22 PM
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