Saratoga News

Council balances the budget by increasing fees, reorganizing

Real estate boom, increase in state revenues help out

Process took six months

By Sarah Lombardo

Amid commendations, complaints and signs of relief, the City Council passed the final balanced budget for 1997-98 and 1998-99 last week, just two weeks shy of the July 1 deadline.

Along with the budget, an increase in fees and a staff reorganization-- including the elimination of almost seven jobs at City Hall-- were also approved.

The event ended six months of strenuous budget negotiations and workshops, during which the staff had to find a way to run the city despite a $1.4 million shortfall as a result of the defeat of the utility-user's tax last November. But with what is called in the budget "a resurgent real estate market," a rise in other state and local tax revenues and proposed increases in fees to obtain full-cost recovery for most of the city's departments, the hole in the city's budget in the general fund totaled slightly less than $800,000.

By raising permit and inspection fees, cutting jobs, eliminating financial support of community events and reducing spending on such items as crossing guards and code enforcement, the city staffers filled the gap between what the city had to spend and where they had originally planned to spend it.

But the process by which that gap was filled left some with questions about what impact the cost-cutting plans would have on service in the city. In a report to the council, Interim City Manager Larry Perlin and Finance Director Thomas Fil presented a list of anticipated effects of the new budget, including

* fewer investigations of minor city code violation complaints and a limited handling of anonymous complaints;

* one less crossing guard;

* reduced counter hours in the planning and building departments;

* reduced reception counter hours;

* longer response times to building inspection requests;

* increased building, planning, recreation, inspection and park and field usage fees;

* elimination of Youth Theater program;

* elimination of Planning Commission and council minutes clerks;

* gradual decline in pavement maintenance as a result of reduced spending on Pavement Management Program;

* less use of the city arborist;

* reallocation of the school resource officers in relation to contributions from schools; and

* elimination of human service grants.

City Hall jobs on the chopping block include the community development director, public works director, finance director, codes administrator, parks and facilities maintenance superintendent, streets maintenance superintendent, assistant to the city manager, associate planner, part-time associate planner, building inspector, receptionist, park maintenance worker, receptionist, Japanese garden caretaker, Japanese garden specialist, volunteer coordinator and a senior clerk typist.

Through the reorganization plan, however, almost 10 new jobs will be created, including those of community environment director, administrative services director, community development manager, public works services manager, administrative services manager, senior building inspector, administrative analyst, part-time administrative analyst, secretary and a community services officer.

"There will undoubtedly be some impacts that we have not been able to quantify or anticipate," Perlin said. One such effect, he added, would be that people may have a harder time reaching staffers at City Hall. But he said the city hopes to offset that by offering residents different means of communication with the city, such as contacting the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Department for code violations.

Councilman Paul Jacobs and Mayor Gillian Moran both said they were not completely happy with the budget and its effects, but said they believed it was the best one under the constraints of the city's new revenue shortfall.

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