Category Archives: City Budget

A Really Big Show (2021)

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The upcoming Portsmouth City Council virtual meeting on Tuesday, May 11, has the makings of what Ed Sullivan would call “a really big show”. No, the Beatles won’t be there, but council will be adopting the Fiscal Year 2022 Budget and considering zoning and two use permit changes that will lay the groundwork for establishment of an entertainment zone and construction of a casino and associated hotel in the Victory Village section of our city.

At its two April virtual meetings city council held public hearings on the components of the overall spending plan for the fiscal year that begins July 1: the annual operating budget, the five-year capital improvement plan, and proposed changes in (tax) rates and levies. Advertised in the usual fashion — printed notices in the Virginian-Pilot and announcements through city communication channels — the notice did not elicit anything like the participation witnessed prior to the pandemic. Whether it was COVID fatigue, the lack of anything that aroused public outrage, or some combination of factors and others, only one speaker provided comments captured by the recordings and minutes of the two sets of hearings. So, if you wish to contribute your ideas before the budget is all “signed, sealed, delivered”, the deadline is 3 PM, Monday, May 10 for written submissions or speaker signups for the Tuesday meeting. The same deadline applies for comments on the casino-related matters going before city council during that same meeting. Last calls, neighbors!

(The agenda for the May 11 Virtual Meeting of city council, current as of this posting date and time, is available here. Links within the agenda — underlined and in blue — will open documents with supplemental information about each associated item. The entire FY 2022 Proposed Budget is accessible here.)

Open Letter to Council and School Board: School Funding Formula

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Honorable City Council and School Board Members:

The idea of establishing a formula-based agreement for sharing local revenue collected by the city with our public school system had merit. The designation of a committee comprised of representatives of the city, the schools, and the public to work out the details of such an agreement was reasonable. Hiring an experienced consultant to guide the process made good sense. Yet, when the months of research, discussion, and planning produced a recommendation to the city council and school board last February, the hope of implementing a policy that could end the long-running antagonism between the two bodies over local funding for education went up in a puff of smoke. What went wrong? Continue reading →

Open Letter to City Council: Defer Meals Tax/Parking Fee Hikes

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Mr. Mayor, Members of Council, and Members of Council-Elect:

With only two regular meetings left on the docket for this calendar year and pending parking fee and meals tax increases set to take effect on January 1, 2021, I ask you to reconsider the timing of those increases. Admittedly, the impact to the taxpayers’ pocketbooks from the meals tax hike is minimal, but in terms of the morale blow to restaurateurs already battered by the pandemic and likely in for still more battering as Trump Virus cases continue to rise globally, nationally, and locally, the prospect of the increase looms larger in their perceptions than the actuality. Similarly, the deferred parking rate increases could be a significant deterrent to patrons of downtown businesses generally, falling on customers who have been long accustomed to free night, weekend, and holiday parking in city garages and at meters. I would argue, as well, that the costs of enforcing the new parking levies could offset much of the anticipated revenue gain from their imposition. I would advise you to obtain an objective cost/benefit analysis before making this change. Again, in the context of the economic disruption this virus has wrought to date, imposing those fee increases now would be completely tone deaf. I urge you shelve them for reconsideration when we return to what we thought of as normalcy.

Please let me know if you need additional information.

Yours truly,
Mark Geduldig-Yatrofsky

Open Letter to City Council: Wrong Time for Retiree Bonuses

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Mr. Mayor and Honorable Members of Council:

In her March 23, 2020, FY 2021 budget transmittal letter, former City Manager L. Pettis Patton sounded this cautionary note:

The FY 2021 proposed budget includes $10.3 million in contributions, $9.5 million debt service on the pension obligation bonds, and an additional $1.5 million retirement fund contribution. The $21.3 million one-year budget impact to the plan with approximately 1,100 total participants poses significant fiscal challenges to the city. It is imperative that we analyze discretionary benefits that have been added over the years and refocus that money towards ensuring the long-term viability of this plan. [Emphasis is mine.]

(Interestingly, the warning itself was not a response to anticipated COVID-19 disruptions but rather to shortsighted practices of councils past and present. Had the pandemic been a factor at the moment the letter went out, its message would have been all the more relevant.) Continue reading →