'As Mayor, I can tell you, this -- I'm proud of what's occurred so far. The hard work by many people has been tremendous with the goal of living within our means and setting a financially sustainable path in the future. The ultimate success of this work during today's 'new normal' is now dependent upon help from our entire community.'"
Grand Island, Neb. — The City of Grand Island is reaching out to its citizens seeking advice and suggestions on the 2011-12 proposed city budget through a series of community meetings held at various locations throughout town.
City council members, Mayor Jay Vavricek, and city administrator Mary Lou Brown will be holding these community budget meetings as a chance to receive feedback from Grand Island residents and answer questions relating to the 2011-12 city budget.
In addition, the community budget meetings will serve as an opportunity to inform and educate citizens on the program prioritization budget process and the difficult decisions that go into balancing a budget when revenue is down and expenses continue to rise.
Brown commented on the importance of the community meetings, "The process of prioritizing city services as programs lends itself directly to public input. The proposed reductions for the 2012 budget have resulted in further impact to city services and it will be insightful to hear directly from citizens. Input received from this series of meetings will be beneficial both to city staff, as well as council members, as we proceed with several study sessions dedicated to the 2012 fiscal year budget."
Four community budget meetings at various locations and times have been scheduled throughout the month of July in an effort to reach out to citizens.
At each meeting, the same information will be presented, which is slated to be a subset of the July 11, city council study session on the 2011-12 budget foundation and initial overview. More public meetings for greater citizen engagement may occur as future community conversations dictate.
Mayor Vavricek said, "As Mayor, the call for more new ways to raise standards in openness and transparency in local government continue with this year's citizen review and city council budget approval process. It's hoped more citizens will become engaged to better influence the outcome of council decisions to meet the city's service expectations in the future.
"As Mayor, I can tell you, this -- I'm proud of what's occurred so far. The hard work by many people has been tremendous with the goal of living within our means and setting a financially sustainable path in the future. The ultimate success of this work during today's "new normal" is now dependent upon help from our entire community."
These meetings not only give citizens multiple opportunities to learn about the budget but also the knowledge to provide feedback on city programs and services to city council members on the proposed budget.
The city council will soon begin studying and reviewing the proposed budget beginning on Monday, July 11, and continue the process at several other city council study sessions and meetings in July.
Citizens are also encouraged to attend these meetings to stay abreast of the ongoing budget process. The City Council will vote to adopt the 2011-12 budget later this summer.
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