City budget maintains current fees, tax rate

The City of Clarendon has proposed a $1.7 million budget for fiscal year 2010 that will keep the current tax rate and the current level of fees if approved.

City Administrator John Webb said the balanced budget includes no money to build reserves and no money for new equipment, but it does include raises for employees and $130,000 for the contract with the Donley County Sheriff’s Office.

The budget is up slightly from the current budget of $1.3 million with one of the major differences in the two budgets being the inclusion of part-time salaries that were left out of the 2008-2009 budget.

“Those expenses were somehow left out last year, but they cover the part-time help we have during the summer months,” Webb said.

The budget also includes about $62,000 in new money for projects related to water and sewer improvements. New fire hydrants are expected to cost the city $5,000, and removal of the old west water tower is figured to cost $12,000.

Webb said he would also like to demolish and remove a concrete water storage tank and related equipment near the City Barn. Those facilities have been unused for decades and are deteriorating terribly. Clearing that area is budgeted for $25,000.

Webb also said he intended to apply for a sewer grant to replace some sewer lines and improve guttering in some areas. That project could cost as much as $200,000, and the proposed budget includes $20,000 for what would be the city’s ten percent match if that grant were to come through.

The city will also apply for drainage improvement grants that would include much needed curbs and sidewalks in some areas, but Webb said that grant, if successful, would not come through until the 2011 budget year.
“We need streets with gutters to help control this drainage and keep our streets intact,” Webb said.

Another new line item is $6,000 for heating and cooling systems at the Burton Memorial Library. Webb said this is for systems already installed but for which the county did not contribute as it was expected to.

The budget also includes $50,000 for possible fines from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ). Webb said the city has been notified of violations regarding illegal dumping north of the city’s recycling center.

“A citizen turned us in to TCEQ after someone dumped illegally on our property,” Webb said. “It doesn’t matter that we didn’t do it. It’s on our property, and we’re being held responsible.”

The exact amount of the fine and the steps necessary for remediation are not known at this point, but the budget is prepared with this possibility. The budget also includes more than $1,600 to fence that area in and hopefully prevent this from happening in the future.

Aldermen are planning to keep the city’s ad valorem tax rate at the current $0.65 per $100 valuation to support this budget. Fees for city services are also unchanged.

A budget hearing and a tax rate hearing will be held next Tuesday, September 8, at 7 p.m. in City Hall.