At the work session of February 12th, City Council members met to discuss the current economic crisis and made a contingency plan in the event future cuts are necessary. City Manager Collins and staff self implemented a hiring freeze on all non-essential departments (except Police and Fire), limited training and travel to required certification training, and are conserving excess fuel funds that were budgeted at the 2008 fuel prices. Staff will also look, in the future, to determine if temporary seasonal employees will be needed or if the City can manage without them.
The Governing Body reviewed Capital Improvement projects for the year, and prioritized them accordingly. Those project currently underway in which time and funding has already been invested in them, as well as projects which are mandated by State or Federal laws will be left intact. Remaining projects were discussed according to their impact on essential services to the citizens. While no projects were officially cut, those deemed non-essential have been placed on "hold" until such time as the economy returns and the projects can be re-instated, or if the economy continues to worsen, be postponed until a later fiscal year.
A total dollar figure of the impact of the "held" projects will be reported when it becomes available.
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