Council approves budget for 2010

After much discussion and a little addition and subtraction, the Liberty Lake City Council approved the 2010 budget this week.

The council began with a scaled back budget proposed by Mayor Wendy Van Orman that included trims to almost every department. Last week the council agreed by consensus to cut $3,000 more from the parks and recreation budget, eliminate $15,000 allocated for public art and to cut $55,000 proposed for an infrastructure-only first phase of the long awaited arboretum.

The additional cut to Parks and Recreation means the city’s popular Chill summer camp will run for one less week in 2010, which the council accepted without comment. Cutting the arboretum money, however, got a second look as some council members changed their mind and two audience members spoke strongly against the cut.

“Everything has gotten put on hold,” said Colette Seubert, president of the Meadowwood Homeowner’s Association, which donated the arboretum land to the city. “We would really like to see something happen.”

Master gardener Louise Quirk said she has been waiting patiently for the arboretum to get started so she can donate a couple of trees. “I would strongly encourage you to at least do the infrastructure,” she said. “The longer we wait, the more expensive it’s going to be. I would really like to see it stay in the budget.”

Council member Judi Owens had said previously that she could live with losing the arboretum money this year. “Since the last council meeting I have thought long and hard about this,” she said. “I decided I really can’t live with that.”

While all the council members agreed the arboretum is a good project, most argued that 2010 simply isn’t the year to pay for any of it. In the end the motion to add the money back to the budget only got affirmative votes from Owens and council member Dave Crump.

A lot of time was also spent discussing whether to cut $100,000 earmarked for a business locater sign program. The signs would point the way to local businesses. “Most of our businesses are on two streets,” said council member Ryan Romney. “I’m confused as to who can’t find their way.”

A few council members argued that the signs had been long promised to local business owners partly as a way to compensate for the city’s restrictive sign ordinance. “It’s a commitment we made, flat out,” said Crump. “This is truly a business-friendly move. I also see it as a potential revenue stream over the long term.”

A motion was made to cut the money from the budget, but it failed to pass. Motions to add $30,000 to pay for a fence behind the police station and $21,000 for a new police car also failed. The fence was planned when the city began renovating the building that would become the library and police station, but it was delayed because of the cost. The fence would block access to the rear of the building, which is where officers enter and leave the building in vehicles and on foot.

Two changes that found consensus with the council were adding $15,000 to pay for a surveillance camera for the new skate park that could be viewed live online by police and the public and removing a total of $12,240 from budget line items dealing with travel, the newsletter and the annual council retreat.