City Council Study Session Agenda and Packet 2008 06 10

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TO: MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL FROM: MALCOLM FLEMING CITY MANAGER DATE: JUNE 10, 2008 SUBJECT: DISCUSSION -CONTEXT FOR DEVELOPING THE 2009 BUDGET ORIGINATING DEPARTMENT: CITY MANAGER SUMMARY: As we begin to develop the proposed 2009 City Budget for Council consideration in the fall, staff wants to make sure that (1) Council members and staff are all familiar with the current forecast of revenues and expenditures, (2) staff has a chance to discuss with the Council the issues that will most likely shape the 2009 and future year budgets and review the preliminary goals and potential budget changes we area considering for 2009, and (3) staff understands what Council's priorities are so we can focus our efforts on proposals that are most likely to receive support from Council when the budget is approved later this year. With this in mind, we intend to cover the topics highlighted below during the Council's June 10 study session. Financial Forecast To provide a context for the later discussions, Finance Director Kevin Watson will start the meeting by reviewing for all major funds the projected revenues, expenditures, fund balance and key assumptions on which the projections are based. This information is intended to clarify the funding we anticipate having available 1:o support each program and the constraints on our overall levels of service. Major Budget Themes As the Mayor and Council members considers priorities they would like to see addressed in 2009 and beyond, staff believes they should consider the following: • The City's management team (including the City Manager) believes that the City is understaffed and under tooled in many areas and that staffing and systems "infrastructure" is not adequate to support some current programs. Without additional resources in some areas we must scale back existing programs in order to implement new or expanded services. Major development projects are or will soon be happening all at once (US 36 EIS, FasTracks, ConocoPhillips, Hwy 42, North End and Takoda building). This requires additional resources to appropriately address these projects. In order to retain existing staff and rE;cruit qualified staff when that is necessary, we need to maintain our commitment to all the various elements of making the City of Louisville an "Employer of Choice", especially keeping compensation competitive. SUBJECT DISCUSSION -CONTEXT FOR AGENDA ITEM DEVELOPING THE 2009 BUDGET