Mayor Declares: Revised Budget Won’t Raise Property Tax Rate
At a City Council work session on Thursday, the mayor will present a revised fiscal year 2011 budget proposal that balances the City’s finances without raising the property tax rate. The mayor’s budget amendment calls for millions of dollars in additional cuts and other changes to offset further declining revenues. It will also ensure the City has the cash flow necessary to keep up with expenses.
Here’s the mayor’s rationale for not raising the property tax rate:
“The public has spoken loud and clear about how we should tackle this budget crisis. We understand the government should not bail itself out to get through this crisis.”
The mayor will unveil details at the City Council Chambers, starting at 1:15 p.m. The event will be aired live on City TV (Verizon Channel 34 and Comcast Channel 99/100). Be sure to check out this blog and the City of Annapolis Twitter page (@cityofannapolis) for more details during the work session.
While the public will not have the opportunity to formally address the council on Thursday, people are invited to speak on the budget at a special meeting of the City Council on Monday. The meeting begins at 6:30 p.m., and the council is expected to pass the budget that night.
In the meantime, let the City Council know what you think about the mayor’s proposal to balance the budget while leaving the property tax rate untouched. Leave a comment here or reach out to the council members here.
The mayor talks about the budget and other matters below in his weekly video address:
Check out Market House proposals … then comment here
The Market House proposals are in, and now they are online for Annapolis to see.
Last month, the mayor invited businesses to submit short- and long-term proposals to set up shop at the Market House, and he was pleased to receive 15 bids to transform part or all of the crown jewel at City Dock.
Now that the review process is underway, the mayor invites you to offer your input on what concepts would best complement the downtown business community.
Go to http://annapolis.gov to find the list of applicants and their proposals. The mayor can offer short-term leases that expire no later than Jan. 3, 2011. The City Council must approve long-term leases.
Mayor Gives Progress Report
Check out Friday’s video message from Mayor Josh Cohen about the status of the city’s snow removal efforts just days after the city was hit with an estimated 42 inches of snow. With more than 40 machines at its disposal, the City is attacking side streets and cul-de-sacs across Annapolis to make roads passable.
The pace of the removal effort is certainly quickening as the city continues to add contractors to the city’s fleet. The Emergency Snow Routes were made passable on Thursday. The Snow Connector Routes were made passable on Friday. Also Friday: Half of the city’s residential roads were made passable.
Please remember: Crews are trying to make streets “passable,” which is not the same as clear down to bare pavement. As the Mayor wrote on Monday, there’s simply too much packed snow and ice on the streets to do more. We want to remove enough snow so roads are traversable. That strategy is allowing crews to cover more streets more quickly than they would otherwise.
Feel free to leave a comment. Thank you.
Mayor: Thank you for your comments
Posted by Phill McGowan on February 12, 2010 · 4 Comments
Josh wanted me to pass along that he appreciates your comments about the City’s snow removal efforts. He obviously has not had time to respond to each one, but please know that he and other city officials have read them all. Much of what you’ve written has helped guide our response during this extraordinary period.
Please keep the comments coming. And if you have a chance, check out the Mayor’s Friday video message to get the latest progress report on snow removal. Thank you.
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