During last night’s Second Budget Hearing, the Mayor and Council voted to set the millage rate and adopt the Village’s Operating & Capital Budget for Fiscal Year (FY) 2023. Residents had the chance to attend in person and virtually to hear Council discussions and to give comments on the budget.
Village Manager Nick Marano presented a brief overview of the millage rate, which serves as the main source of revenue for the Village’s General (operating) Fund, accounting for almost 50% of General Fund revenues. Manager Marano reiterated that the budget reflects revenues based on a lower millage rate than that of the last fiscal year. He added that the rate of 2.35 mills will be the 6th-lowest out of 35 municipalities in Miami-Dade County. “At 2.35, the Village of Palmetto Bay is delivering a full-service city to the residents at a very reasonable rate in terms of property tax rate,” the Manager said.
The Manager then presented a comprehensive overview of the proposed budget for the upcoming fiscal year, including a breakdown of revenue sources and expenditures. The manager showed that ad-valorem taxes, intergovernmental revenue (sales tax), utility taxes and franchise fees account for nearly 80% of the Village’s General Fund revenues. In Expenditures, he showed that police services make up 53%. The most significant change to the budget since the first budget hearing, as explained by the Manager, is the addition of one police officer to Palmetto Bay’s Policing Unit.
The Manager stressed that the proposed budget allocates nearly $1M more for Police Services. “Additional police officers add additional capability, and they provide not only a sense of security, but the fact of a greater amount of public safety,” he said. The Manager added that the salary for the new officer would be deducted from the overtime line item without affecting the bottom line in the police budget. The additional body reduces the need for overtime use. The Village Council accepted the amendment and voted in favor of the item. In terms of savings, Manager Marano indicated that the Total Fund Balance for the upcoming fiscal year is $333,655 higher than the year we are just concluding.
In the coming fiscal year, Palmetto Bay is moving forward with various capital projects. The Total Capital Outlay for FY 2023 is $2,519,067. The majority of the funding allocation was attributed to the following projects:
FY 2023 CAPITAL & MAINTENANCE BUDGET HIGHLIGHTS
- $1,200,000 - Coral Reef Park Recreation Building
- $500,000 - projects from the Parks Master Plan (to be determined after plan completion in December 2022)
- $250,000 – to Maintenance Fund
- $200,000 - Palmetto Bay Park trails (FRDAP grant match)
- $150,000 - Phase 2 of the C-100 canal survey (50:50 split with SFWMD)
- $100,000 - Coral Reef Park Pine Rockland restoration
- $100,000 - Comprehensive Plan updates (EAR)
- $100,000 - Village Resiliency Plan
- $68,750 – Roundabout Artwork for Franjo Road (AIPP)
- $50,000 - Tree Survey Phase 1
- $50,000 - Economic Activity Market Survey
In addition, park impact fees have been set aside for the Woods passive park project and the Coral Reef Park volleyball court expansion, at $250,000 and $50,000 respectively. Because the top items in the recent Community Survey was the condition of roads and sidewalks and traffic, the budget includes a 60% increase in funding for roadway improvements for a total of $400,000, a 62% increase in funding for sidewalks to the tune of $275,000, and a 150% increase for traffic calming projects. Freebee expenses were reduced from $360,000 to $225,000 because a grant that funded 50% of the project cost has ended. Additionally, the new Freebee service will prioritize seniors and the disabled.
The Manager also provided an overview of how ARPA funds have been allocated for the following year. A portion has been allocated to the General Fund and other portions are earmarked for capital projects such as well water abandonment, a Floodplain Master Plan, and Phase 1 of Veterans Park.
Manager Marano also clarified that what appeared to be an increase in salaries in the General Fund was the result of the reallocation of expenditures between the Special Revenue Fund and General Fund. The Manager recently changed the allocation formula, attributing a larger percentage to the General Fund and a smaller percentage to the Special Revenue Fund, which includes the Stormwater Budget. The Manager explained that shifting the formula allows for additional capital dollars to be used for drainage projects and other crucial work in the Public Services Department.
In the Stormwater Budget, which is apart and separate from the General Fund, Manager Marano explained that the Village has increased funding for flood mitigation projects. To that extent, the FY 2023 budget includes the following funding allocations for stormwater infrastructure:
- $300,000 for local drain improvements; an increase of 200%
- $150,000 for engineering design
- Sub-basin Project Designs for
- Sub-basin 11- $187,000
- Sub-basin 41- $75,000
- Sub-basin 43- $130,325
- Sub-basin 44- $124,705
- Sub-basin 57/96- $112,430
- $3,062,500 Legislative Appropriation for:
- Sub-basin 57/96 construction- $2,670,000
- Sub-basin 43 construction- $392,500
Following the Manager’s presentation and during Council comments, members of the Council thanked the Manager and staff for their hard work on the Budget. Vice Mayor Tellam specifically commented on the Manager’s use of ARPA funds, saying, “We have had some declines. You have put things in where you needed to, and it’s not simply about big projects. It’s about replacing some of the loss. And it looks like to me you have a plan on how to address it over the coming years and not insist on raising our taxes.” In response, Manager Marano reminded the Council that the Village will end the current fiscal year with almost $900,000 more than the budgeted amount. Manager Marano added, “I will take action proactively so that the Village Council will not be in a position at the end of FY 24—again, two years from now, you will not be in a position where you will be forced to raise taxes. I will watch the numbers and I’ll watch our expenditures and will adjust as required.”
Mayor Karyn Cunningham also thanked the manager and Village staff for their work that was put into creating a fiscally responsible budget and said, “The good news is, the priorities of the residents are reflected in this legacy budget, and we know that because a community survey was done.”
The new fiscal year starts on October 1, 2022 and runs through September 30, 2023.
