Following a pair of public hearings in November and a number of review meetings beginning in September, the Mountlake Terrace City Council adopted the 2021-2022 Biennial Budget at their December 7 meeting.
According to City Manager Scott Hugill, the budget focuses on maintaining core services and projects currently underway during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Budget highlights include completion of the Recreation, Parks and Open Space (RPOS) Plan to gather the community’s priorities in these areas; Veterans Memorial Park Master Plan; design of Main Street Phase II (56th Avenue from 236th to 230th Street SW); replacement of aging water, sewer, and stormwater infrastructure; and refinancing existing debt while interest rates are at historic lows. Online permitting and pet licensing are also included to make city services more convenient for the community.
The biennial budget recognizes both the city’s lost revenues, particularly in the Recreation Department, as well as possible reductions in state-shared revenues (e.g., taxes from liquor and marijuana sales). The city will continue to monitor its revenues and as the economy recovers, look at addressing other unmet needs including facility maintenance and custodial care, marketing, economic development and expanded communications.
In conclusion, the biennial budget maintains current programs (with the exception of recreation), maintains strong reserve funds, and provides a balanced operating budget.
For more information on the city’s budget and finances, visit the city’s website at www.cityofmlt.com/218 or email cityhall@mltwa.gov.
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