Next year’s $28.5-million budget sets aside $250,000 for
Gilroy’s sidewalks, $1 million for new arts center at Monterey and
Seventh streets
Gilroy – Next year’s budget for big-ticket projects includes $1 million for the future arts center and an unprecedented $250,000 for sidewalk repairs.
The sidewalk funds are the most “exciting” part of the $28.5-million spending plan, according to City Administrator Jay Baksa, who will flesh out the 2006-2007 Capital Improvement Budget for city leaders and the public Monday night.
“Up until this year, we were trying to scratch together $75,000 for sidewalks out of the general fund,” Baksa said.
He expected up to $150,000 of the increased spending to go toward clearing out the backlogged 50/50 program, which splits the cost of sidewalk repairs with homeowners. The program would require $100,000 to maintain annually, Baksa predicted, with the remainder of funds dedicated to problem areas throughout the city.
Officials recently formed the Sidewalk Task Force to prioritize improvements to cracked sidewalks, corners that fail to meet handicapped-accessibility standards and streets that have no sidewalks.
Former Councilman Bob Dillon is a member of the task force who spent much of his fall political campaign calling for citywide sidewalk repairs.
“It’s never really been anything but cement and the money to lay the cement,” he said. “It looks like one component is being torn loose a bit so we can see what we can get done. That’s highly encouraging to the task force.”
Mayor Al Pinheiro welcomed the additional funding but urged caution pending the outcome of a labor dispute between City Hall and the local fire union. An outside arbitrator is expected to settle the dispute over wage and benefit increases in April.
“We’re doing this with a very optimistic view,” Pinheiro said of the extra sidewalk funding. “But if we get the kind of arbitration that the fire union is asking for, then obviously this is going to blow everything out the door.”
But a strongly pro-union decision is unlikely to sideline spending on a future arts center. Officials have already invested more than $2 million to acquire land for the center at the corner of Monterey and Seventh streets, and they have set aside $1 million in the new budget to acquire the remaining acreage. The budget also includes $8 million to construct the facility.
The five-year spending plan also earmarks $22 million for a new library, though that project hinges on state voters approving a $600 million bond in June. If approved, officials believe the city stands a strong chance of receiving nearly $15 million in library construction funds from the state.
In addition to the arts center and library, the city will construct several bridges in the next five years, most notably a $7.9-million project that will connect the outlet centers with the Pacheco Pass shopping centers to the south.
In the meantime, the city is spending millions of dollars set aside in past budgets on current projects such as the new police station and road widening along Santa Teresa Boulevard.
“The budget’s not as exciting as in past years because many of the items that are currently under construction are finishing up. And though there are a couple of projects that will happen, … everything’s on hold until money starts to regenerate in the impact fee funds,” Baksa said, referring to the various pots of money used to finance new projects. “We have to let some of our financial batteries recharge.”
The capital improvements budget is the first of two major financial planning documents council ratifies annually. In May, councilmen will review the city’s overall operating budget. They approve both documents in June, the end of Gilroy’s fiscal year.
Budget workshop
– What: Sidewalk funds, arts center money and other budget priorities go before councilmen, planning commissioners
– When: Monday, March 27, at 6pm
– Where: Council Chambers at City Hall, 7351 Rosanna St.
