Martin Granum
Red Bank's draft budget has a $1.8 million gap between proposed expenditures and projected revenue.
To fully fund that budget would require a 59-cent property tax increase. However, City Manager Martin Granum said it is "still early" in the budget process and it remains to be seen what will happen on the tax rate. He said the five City Commission members "will dive deeply into the budget" at two upcoming public budget sessions.
The first will be next Thursday (May 25) at 4 p.m. The next will be the following Wednesday (May 31) at 5 p.m. Both are at Red Bank City Hall.
One cent on the property tax rate in Red Bank brings in $30,500.
Red Bank's current property tax rate is $1.10 per $100 of assessed valuation. Mr. Granum noted that the city of Chattanooga has a $2.25 rate.
The proposed $9.7 million budget includes additional personnel and services, including an additional police officer and the equivalent of an added firefighter position. There are also new positions in sanitation and stormwater.
It also includes an across the board seven percent employee pay increase with some employees getting higher amounts in positions where the city is having trouble recruiting and retaining workers. Mr. Granum said he would not be eligible for the salary increase.
Mr. Granum said the budget is based on "the Commission's goals and the reality of what we need to pay our staff."
There are proposed capital items that would require debt service payments.
Finance Director John Alexander this week told the Commission that the city's fund balance (rainy day fund) "was very healthy as of December." It was around $5.7 million.
Mr. Alexander said last year there was a projected budget deficit of $806,874. However, he said the city is $250,000 to the good at this point. He said that included a $300,000 reimbursement from TDOT. He said the budget year may end with the city "about even.":
Mr. Granum said, "We projected that we would go in the hole, but we all knew we were not going to do that." He said Mr. Alexander "budgets conservatively on the revenue side."
Here is the City Manager’s FY 2023/24 Budget Message given to the City Commissioners in early May:
Red Bank City Commission
In accordance with section 6-22-122 of the Charter for the City of Red Bank, Tennessee, please find enclosed the FY 2023/24 Budget Estimate carefully developed by staff for your consideration as we commence the FY2023/24 budget cycle. The Budget Estimate achieves the following key objectives:
- Address all five Commission Goals
- Meet the needs of staff with several ‘Employer of Choice’ features to retain talent including: keep pace with inflation with a 7% cost of living adjustment (COLA) for all employees; make targeted ‘market adjustments’ in pay where necessary; enhance longevity pay to compliment last year’s uniform pay chart; for the first time, provide long-term disability benefits
- Make balanced investments to realize measured growth across every Department to sustain excellent municipal service delivery
- Place our revenue on a prudent, adequate, sustainable level going forward
Each Department now addresses their unique needs as summarized in the following paragraphs.
The Red Bank Police Department budget reflects the reality of policing in Tennessee, if not America; there are fewer candidates, increasing demand for excellence and particularly regarding training and technology, and the local market is highly competitive. This RBPD Budget Estimate includes market adjustments in pay for all uniformed staff in addition to the city-wide COLA. Regarding law enforcement excellence, this budget adds two officer positions bringing the department from 24 to 26 full time officers (including the grant-funded position.) Adding these positions improves our staffing ratio, brings us closer to alignment with agencies in our area, and increases our ability to send officers to attend training. Lastly, our focus on technology is sustained with timely replacement of law enforcement technology and city-wide IT equipment.
The Red Bank Fire Department conducted a needs assessment, and their budget was developed accordingly; it reflects a focus on staffing, facilities, training, protective firefighter clothing, technology, and equipment replacement.
Staffing: the biggest challenge to moving the fire department forward is the need for more on-duty personnel. This budget adds funding to the part-time budget to make a small step in that direction. As we have learned, you fight a fire with the personnel you have on duty at the time of need. This will put 5 firefighters on duty in the after-hours (overnight) time frame, with 3 firefighters on duty around the clock at Station #1. This will allow for the first-out engine (2 F/F) and the hose tender or rescue truck (1 F/F) to respond initially. This will increase our response staffing from a minimum of 4 to 5 per shift 24/7.
Facilities and Training: it is important to highlight the long-term investment needed at Station #2 and the small training area; to that end we have included needed facility maintenance and repair funding as well as training materials/props for our current training in this budget. But it is necessary to begin a conversation about a larger training area adjacent to a new and modern Station #2 in the coming years.
Protective Firefighter Clothing: currently RBFD firefighters are only issued one set of turn-out gear… a long-standing, less-than-ideal practice. The industry best practice is to issue two sets to each member so when the primary set becomes soiled after use, it can be cleaned and dried while the second set is placed into service. This prevents a whole shift going out of service due to not having clean and dry turnout gear. This is also a best practice to reduce the risk of contact with cancer-causing debris and soot.
Computer Technology: While the fire department has been using a degree of technology in the fire apparatus (CAD w/ AVL) for several years, these units were hand-me-downs after the police department donated them some time ago. It is now time to replace them as they are no longer supported and cannot be updated. This technology allows for a faster response because telecommunicators can dispatch the closest unit available.
Equipment: The RBFD has approx. 19,000’ of hose, approximately 12,000’ of which are 20 years or older, the NFPA (National Fire Protection Association) requires that hose be replaced every twenty years unless it fails before then.
The Red Bank Public Works budget reflects an ongoing, measured evolution of Public Works to achieve proper alignment between expectations, goals, and resources. Key investments include:
Staffing: adding two positions -- a full-time position to stormwater and a full-time position to solid waste. Both positions are long overdue, reflect the ongoing demand for service in these two core areas of service delivery, and are funded by their respective service fees. Investing in these service areas restores capacity in Streets and Roads which historically was shorted when these areas needed capacity.
Streets and Roads: RFP to complete road inventory and develop a pavement condition index (PCI) and enroll it into our iWorQ Pavement Management Program; continue striping improvements that began FY-23; and inclusion of our streets in a nascent Capital Improvement Program. Incorporates the Commission Goal to ‘improve multi-modal transportation networks.’
Storm Water: through participation with the TDEC/ARPA funding grant we will: inventory and map our storm water (SW) infrastructure; review our current SW ordinances and implement an adequate fee schedule to achieve a viable SW program that serves our needs in accordance with the Commission Goal to ‘revamp the stormwater ordinance, processes, and fee structure’; repair identified SW deficiencies that need immediate attention using grant/ARPA funds. Develop and maintain a SW Management Plan going forward.
Expand our Parks, Trails & Recreation services to include funding for the following: RFP for ‘Park Needs Assessment’; improvements at White Oak Park including playground replacement and White Oak Connector Trail amenities; modest improvements at both of the city’s cemeteries; water fountains at Kids Corner; improvements to pickleball courts; and restrooms, water fountains and additional features at the Red Bank Community Center and playground. Staff work will focus on Parks and Recreation plan as it relates to the Commission Goal to ‘develop parks, trails and recreation services’ and inclusion of our parks in a nascent Capital Improvement Program.
Creation of the Office of Community Development: under the leadership of the Deputy Director this team will oversee a vast array of building, zoning, planning, parks, trails, and recreation services. Immediate goals included in this budget: lead the effort to develop a Red Bank Comprehensive Plan; RFP for Small Area Plan (FRBMSS); focus on developing a conversion agreement with TDEC/NPS. All of which directly contribute to achieving the Commission Goal to ‘develop a comprehensive plan, including fulfilling the land conversion agreement and the former Red Bank Middle School site’. With the arrival of both a planner and a park manager we will begin efforts to achieve the Commission Goal to ‘create a Red Bank Community Library and Civic Center.’
The leadership and goals of this Commission, and the expectations for excellence from the public we serve, have informed staff as we developed this Budget Estimate. This Budget Estimate proposes a collective agreement on goals, expectations and resources shared by all: Community, Commission and Staff. As the budget cycle gets underway a conversation will be necessary regarding revenues … property taxes… as this Budget Estimate evolves and ultimately becomes an Adopted Budget by the end of the budget cycle.
Respectfully submitted,
Martin E. Granum
City Manager