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Naples to hold first public hearing on budget

— Naples City Council will have money on its mind Wednesday.

Council will hold a special meeting Wednesday night to discuss the fiscal 2009 budget. The $106 million budget needs to be approved by the end of September, and goes into effect Oct. 1.

Naples City Council last month tentatively set the property tax rate at 1.1315 mills, which is the rollback rate of $1.13 per $1,000 of the property’s value.

At that rate Naples taxpayers will not see a tax increase next year. Instead, they will pay the same property taxes as they did this year.

Property taxes make up the largest revenue source for the city’s $37 million general fund, which supports the operational side of city government.

Not increasing taxes means the city will need to take about $600,000 out of its reserves to balance the budget.

The city will have $12 million in its general fund reserves by Sept. 30, which is the end of the fiscal year, Naples Finance Director Ann Marie Ricardi has said. The reserves are generally used for one-time expenditures or disaster relief.

Dipping into the reserves isn’t the only measure city officials are taking to make sure the budget is balanced come Oct. 1.

The most significant cuts come in terms of staff. The city will be reducing its staff by 32 positions, saving the city about $2.3 million in salaries and benefits. Those cuts come from all departments, and affect about 22 employees.

The staffing cuts come out of the general fund.

Other city funds also will see cuts. Council members decreased funding for a Fifth Avenue lighting plan to $220,000, from $440,000. They’ve also reduced funding for a new visioning plan by $15,000, and decreased funding to implement River Park’s master plan to $150,000 from $250,000.

But before council members balance the budget, they’ll have to tackle their regular council meeting. All of the items on the Aug. 20 agenda were continued to Wednesday’s meeting because of Tropical Storm Fay.

Items on Wednesday’s agenda include 10 live entertainment permit requests and a presentation by Collier County Coastal Zone Director Gary McAlpin and Natural Resource Manager Mike Bauer about managing Clam Pass.

The city also will have an executive session at 11:30 a.m. to discuss a lawsuit between the North Naples Fire Control District and the city of Naples, and its firefighters pension fund’s board of directors.

The regular Naples City Council meeting begins at 8:30 a.m., at Naples City Hall, Eighth Street South. The budget meeting will begin at 5:05 p.m.

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