The new budget document is expected out today. You can read coverage about the Mayor’s presentation last night at the NHI and NHR. Here are stories worth reading.
NPR: What Happens When City Hall Goes Bankrupt?
NHI: Mayor Proposes $466M Budget
NHR: Mayor proposes 4.6% boost in spending
NHI: Mayor’s Office Upgrades
NHI: Budget Watchdogs Release Plan
NHI: Stetson Library (Funding Restored, but interesting debate)
NHI: Tweed Peace Plan
We have a $17 Million shortfall this current fiscal year alone.
The below subsidies are rather small and dropping them should have minimal impact as the table clearly illustrates. Why do we need to subsidize the airport for $12.58 per flight? We can keep the airport, end the controversy among residents for $12.58 per flight. Compare $12.58 per flight with $6.03/rider of the trolley. From a subsidy standpoint, we would be better off flying people around then sending them by trolley. More seriously, the trolley is “free” to riders and only 9 people per hour? It looks like even when you give this service away, people are not interested. If it provides a service for those who are unable to walk, we could give them cab vouchers at a considerable cost savings.
| Subsidy | Amount | Tickets/Passengers/Flights | Cost Per unit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tweed New Haven | $800,000 | 176 Flights/day | $12.58/flight |
| Shubert Theater | $410,000 | 93,000 Patrons | $4.10/person |
| Pilot Pen | $135,000 | 94,639 in 2007 | $1.43/Person |
| Downtown Trolley | $350,000 | 58,000 (9 People per hour) | $6.03/person |
Aired: 02/22/2008 - 9:00am Listen
Demographic trends in Connecticut are pointing to a looming crisis. The state has lost more young workers than any other since 1990. Read more…
See how this ties into an article about people moving to places with low property taxes. We need to keep property taxes under control to continue to keep New Haven a viable Connecticut City.
(NHCAN) is pleased to announce the budget recommendations for the 2008-2009 Fiscal Year. We have prepared a list of recommendations including the ending of unsustainable subsidies, to the reorganization of departments, to the transformation of the budget document itself. Below you will find the link to the full document (2.3 MB), as well as, shorter versions of the document. We recognize that some of these recommendations may be impractical or even naïve. We invite you to consider these in the spirit in which it is offered and to offer superior alternatives for the general good. We look forward to continuing this discussion.
2008-2009 Budget Public Comments(2.3 MB)
Executive Summary Only (414 KB)
Full Document Without the Appendices (1.4 MB)
Appendices Only (2.0 MB)
Being an alderperson is a tough job and requires a lot of time, not just for full BOA meetings, but for committee meetings, events, and responding to people in their wards. Some of them got 100% attendance at full BOA meetings in 2007. That is quite an accomplishment - thanks and congrats. Below is a table of the final attendance. Click here for the full spread sheet. How did your alderperson do? Happy, not happy? Contact them and let them know.
2007 Attendance (Listed by Ward)
February 25, Monday @ 5:30 PM Joint Finance/CSEP
March 5, Wednesday Joint Finance/PS
March 12, Monday @ 5:30 PM Public Hearing on the Budget
March 25, Tuesday Budget Workshop (Overview)
Monthly Meeting
March 31, Monday Budget Workshop
April 2, Wednesday Budget Workshop
April 8, Tuesday Budget Workshop
April 9, Wednesday Budget Workshop Monthly Meeting
April 15, Tuesday @7:00 PM Deliberations on the Budget
April 29, Tuesday @7:00 PM Public Hearing on the Budget
May 7, Wednesday Deliberations on the Budget (If needed)
May 14, Wednesday Monthly Meeting
May 27, Tuesday Board of Aldermen Special Budget meeting
June 11, Wednesday Monthly Meeting
July 9, Wednesday Monthly Meeting
August 13, Wednesday Monthly Meeting
September 10, Wednesday Monthly Meeting
October 7, Tuesday @7:00 PM Monthly Meeting
November 12, Wednesday Monthly Meeting
December 10, Wednesday Monthly Meeting (If Needed)
All meetings will begin at 6:00 PM in the Aldermanic Chamber, City Hall, 165 Church Street New Haven, unless otherwise noted.
Read this article about the effects of taxes on migration inside the United States.
I come late to this discussion. Yale is funding this new EDC to the tune of $320K a year — which will probably cover staff salaries and travel budgets. M. Whelley must be coming to this new position with definite ideas as to what it will take to stem the outflow of business and to attract newcomers to New Haven since she has done this previously in Baltimore.
So the question becomes — ” What did M. Whelley accomplish in Baltimore during her tenure there and what support and how effective were the City and STate entities she had to deal with and through? Since Yale is behind this initiative one might conclude that they are comfortable with her thinking on this score and that they like what was accomplished in Baltimore. WE should look to Baltimore to get an insight as to what is in store.
I am not a development expert so can only speculate as to what attracts business to one locale versus another. Quality of life is an obvious factor in determining whether people move to the suburbs or come to the City. If we asked businesses that have left the City or those that considered coming, what factors drove their decision?
Perhaps Yale’s investments in the City will be used to leverage other business investment? In which case the degree to which this new EDC can operate independently of the City may be key to it’s success. The constitution of the rest of the Board may be quite important.
I have no supporting evidence, yet I suspect that the City’s attractiveness to business as well as to new residents is a function of it’s effectiveness in delivering City services. Again without supporting evidence, I would posit that the City’s educational system is also a major factor in determining whether people want to locate here and helps determine whether business expansion is supported by the educational skills of the labor force.
So I raise the question — how effective can this new EDC be if related steps are not taken to improve the cost effectiveness of City service delivery and if radical improvements are not made in the performance of the Education system of the City?
It is also logical to think that the attractiveness of the City for businesses and residents depends on how taxpayers feel about the value they receive for the tax dollars they are required to pay. If City taxes are high, are projected to increase significantly over the next 5 years and if improvements are not made to the cost effectiveness of City services, then any business thinking of coming here or expanding here must factor in these much higher taxes and uneven service delivery.
Does the new EDC have any capacity to influence these factors? Will it be allowed to?
Finally, I note that the new EDC will include the City’s top two officers who influence the City’s development — City Plans and Economic Development. The new EDC is an indirect reflection on the effectiveness of our economic development efforts. Would economic development have a better chance of being effective if these two departments — and perhaps others — were brought together under an effective leader?
The spectacle of the Building Department trying to become a profit center by charging permit fees unrelated to operating costs from the same investors that the City wishes to attract suggests these departments may be working at cross purposes.
My bottom line is that this new Corporation is necessary given the realities and effectiveness of the Administration’s efforts in this area. If Yale can leverage it’s presence, jobs, investments and brainpower to help the City meet these goals then we must all wish them well in this enterprise.
I am encouraged by this development.
-Harry David, Member, NHCAN Steering Committee
The new arrangement of Alderpersons has been announced, you can see the full line up here. The finance committee members are below:
Shah (Chair)
Silverman (Vice-Chair)
Perez
Goldfield
Jackson-Brooks
Clark
Castro
Rhodeen
Sandman
Unfortunately, its not too early to begin thinking about the next Budget Cycle (2008-2009). We are soliciting ideas for what you think represents Financial Responsibility in New Haven. Do you have spending cuts, new programs, or revenue generation ideas? Please send them to us at the email address at the bottom of the page. We will be submitting a formal recommendation from NHCAN to the BOA once our ideas are compiled into this year’s proposal.
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2008-9 Budget Recommendations
5 Year City Financial Projections
