At its adjourned meeting on June 6, City Council held its second budget workshop to review and provide feedback on the proposed Fiscal Year 2022-2023 Budget, which will be officially adopted by Council on June 20.
As presented at the adjourned Council meeting on May 2, the City of La Verne is in excellent financial standing with an estimated surplus of $769,000 and a blossoming General Fund. Property tax revenue is projected to grow nearly four percent, and recreation programs are expected to generate significantly more income this year due to the return of programs that were previously suspended due to the pandemic. Since this surplus is not dependent on one-time revenues, these financial gains are anticipated to extend into the foreseeable future.
“La Verne is in a great position to make investments to improve the quality of life for our residents and expand the services that are important to our community,” said Councilmember Wendy Lau. “We appreciate our City staff and department leaders for working so hard to prepare this budget, which will set the City of La Verne up for continued financial stability.”
The City is planning to resurface the basketball courts at Lowell Brandt Park, install a crosswalk at 6th Street and D Street, develop the pedestrian bridge crossing Arrow Highway and refurbish the pool at Las Flores Park.
The La Verne Fire Department (LAFD) also plans to continue full steam ahead with department-wide improvements. Chief Nigg opened his presentation by highlighting the improvements in revenue and services LVFD has been working on since his appointment last fall. The department is expected to generate an additional $200,000 through inspections and other anticipated revenue. Earlier this year, LVFD increased its inspection fees to accurately reflect the costs of conducting these safety inspections. Overall, the LVFD expects to increase its annual revenue by $3.8 million.
The fire department is expected to be fully staffed later this summer, which will be the first time in several years. In light of these milestones, Chief Nigg requested additional funding to fill a Deputy Chief position to manage the day-to-day operations of the department and provide additional leadership support.
“I am very pleased with the fire department’s development this past year. Bringing on a Deputy Chief will allow us to address important tasks at hand and give us the bandwidth to plan for the future,” stated Chief Nigg. “We have been working hard to strategize LVFD’s growth, and with the right staff, I am confident these plans will come to fruition.”
City staff will present the finalized budget to the City Council during its meeting on June 20. Council’s adoption of the budget authorizes the commencement of projects and programs for the new fiscal year starting July 1.
Contact: Bob Russi, City Manager
Telephone: (909) 596-8726