Indiana

Bad News From Beech Grove

By Abdul Hakim-Shabazz

This memo went out this weekend to Beech Grove city employees from Mayor Joe Wright. 

Everyone,

As I discussed at the employee budget presentations in September and again in my State of the City address in October, 2009 will be a dramatic transition year for the City. In preparation for legislation-imposed reductions as required by House Bill 1001 (property tax caps) and now, with the grim revenue forecasts in the economy, transition realities are here. 

The entire country is in a recession; in most experts? opinions, the worst one we have had in decades.  As you may have read in Friday?s STAR, Governor Daniels ordered steep budget cuts at the state level and no raises for state employees.   

What happens at the federal and state levels, affects Beech Grove. Our revenue flow has depended on $2.7 million in income taxes and $5 million in property taxes.  Both of these areas have taken hard hits lately, thereby negatively affecting the dollars we receive.

We are proactively preparing for the inevitable realities coming our way.  Many difficult decisions will be made and phased in during the first quarter of 2009.

In this process, our priorities are:

• to maintain public safety as the top priority for our community
• to ensure the surplus is protected
• to maintain our balanced budget
• to ensure the retention of quality services through better efficiency of available resources.

 What is on the horizon:

• there will be a five to ten percent reduction in the City?s workforce
• there will be an impact on healthcare benefits due to the rapid rising cost of services and drugs

I have directed Clerk Treasurer Kincaid, Chiefs Buckley and Witmer, Public Works Director Merl and the public safety unions to work with me to evaluate all possible steps and implement lean service concepts that allow us to comply with HB 1001?s requirements and contend with the decrease in revenue while maintaining our high quality of public safety and City services for our citizens.

There is no good time to share this news. Big changes are required by legislation and the economic realities of our time. The decisions and end results will be difficult for everyone involved.  I will continue to communicate with you as we move forward.  Thank you. 

Mayor Joe Wright

City of Beech Grove

Yikes!!!

Full post as published by Indiana Barrister on December 15, 2008 (boomark / email).