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Budget rides rising revenues
By CHRISTOPHER GOFFARD
© St. Petersburg Times, TAMPA -- Its budget fueled by robust property tax revenues, the city plans next year to fund 17 new police officers, 16 firefighters and 63 workers to staff new and refurbished recreation centers across the city. The city's proposed $649-million budget for fiscal year 2002, released Thursday, marks a $39-million increase over 2001. The city's property tax rate, however, will not rise for the 13th consecutive year. Spending on the Police Department will jump from $99-million to $104-million. The city plans to spend about $800,000 on eight new officers for an added street-crimes squad, and nine new officers divided between Tampa Heights, the Channel District, and New Tampa. It will also spend $4.3-million to replace 138 police cars and buy 17 new ones, said city budget officer Jim Stefan. To staff a new Fire-Rescue station in Hunter's Green, the city will also allot about $750,000 for 16 workers. About $3-million will go to a retirement buyout program for police and firefighters. The city will open nine new or refurbished recreation centers, the largest of them a 12,000-square-foot facility in Jackson Heights called the Youth Education Center, which is expected to be open next summer. The proposed 63 workers staffing the centers will range from recreation supervisors to janitors and park rangers. There will be slight increases in water and solid waste fees; the average household is expected to pay 80 cents more a month next year for water, and $2.25 more a month for solid waste. Stefan, the budget officer, said the increased money in the city coffers can be attributed in part to taxes from new construction and assessment increases. Property tax revenue will be $96.4-million in 2002, up $13-million from the current year. "This may be a peak year," Stefan said. "I think everybody's expecting it to level off." The City Council will decide whether to approve the budget after two public hearings next month. Council chairman Charlie Miranda said he was pleased with the commitment to public recreation centers. "When I was growing up, if I didn't have Cuscaden Park, some of us would have certainly been juvenile delinquents with a record," Miranda said. - Christopher Goffard can be reached at (813) 226-3337 or goffard@sptimes.com.
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