City

With so many cities in Minnesota experiencing budget cuts and hardship, city officials in Austin are hoping the Austin area will not experience the same blow to programs and upcoming projects.

“We want to maintain the programs we’ve got,” said Tom Dankert, director of administrative services. “A majority of the city council has indicated that all programs in effect for 2010 will be in effect for 2011.”

The city is already compensating for some lack of funding with the recent City Council vote to increase the tax levy by six percent, which will bring in $234,000 in additional tax revenue. The six percent increase brings the total 2011 budgeted tax levy to $4.13 million.

The tax levy increase equates to approximately $20 in additional taxes on a median-value Austin home of $102,000.

Whether or not the city will need to cut specific projects and programs is dependent on if the city receives the $675,000 in increased LGA from the state. LGA is a state program that funds many cities and towns in greater Minnesota, and there is still a chance that some of that funding will be cut in 2011.

In the event that Austin does not receive the extra LGA funds, the City Council has outlined areas of the budget in which over $1 million can be saved.

According to Dankert and the 2011 proposed budget book, $250,000 can be saved by postponing capital outlay projects like the construction of a new animal shelter, $75,000 can be saved by leaving the street worker vacancy open and $75,000 can also be saved by postponing the hiring of a new librarian.

Dankert said $115,000 of budgeted funds could be saved by not transferring it to the building funds for capital projects and the city hall carpet project can be moved to 2012 to free up $25,000.

If the city does not receive the additional LGA funding from the state, Dankert said the $425,000 meant for the Law Enforcement Center remodel can be taken out of the police PERA fund instead of the general fund, which would technically save the city that money.

City Administrator Jim Hurm said the city is trying to cut back in any areas possible.

“Many cities to stuff by borrowing money but we don’t do that here,” Hurm said.

Additional cuts have been made to the community band, supplies for city offices and in the public relations office.

Dankert also cited the fact that 2011 will see a zero percent increase in wages of city officials; last year there was a three percent increase, which equates to about $250,000.

“You can constitute that as a cut,” Dankert said. “I would hope the citizenry would appreciate that.”

Hurm said he is pleased with the way Austin city officials and City Council have been handling the budget situation.

“Department heads have to be given a lot of credit,” Hurm said. “The last few years we’ve come in under budget.”