The City of Morrison Council held a ten-minute Public Hearing on Monday, April 22, 2013, beginning at 6:50 p.m., in the Whiteside County Board Room, 400 N. Cherry Street, Morrison, IL. The Public Hearing preceded the regularly-scheduled City Council Meeting at 7:00.
Mayor Roger Drey opened the Public Hearing with roll call and recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance. All City officials were present. The purpose of the Hearing, Drey stated, was to receive Public Comment on the Fiscal Year 2013-2014 Budget from interested persons. There were thrree.
Harvey Zuidema spoke about the field groomer position, on page 16, which paid $10,500 this year. He said “$7000 to $8000 is supposed to be paid next year. We’ve allotted $0 on the budget. Where is it coming from?” He concluded it should be shown on next year’s budget.
Alderman Marti Wood complained that during a previous budget meeting at the Odell Public Library Community Room, she had asked several questions and “was told CA Wise would get back to me.” She added he did not, and he told her to email her questions to him. She sent him “several” and sent some to Aldermen. However, she received no replies. She had several questions, including
- Is $120,000 enough for the French Creek extension?
- What are the completion dates on these projects?
- Can we pay for street lights differently?
- Is there an alternative for the Sports Complex fees?
- How did the expenses drop?
- The Community Room [budgeted] expenses are $1000; [will that include] addressing the [circuit] breaker problem?
- [There is] $325,000 listed as Miscellaneous Income; what’s going there? The auditor says any amount of $1000 or more needs its own line item.”
- Revenue and Expenses are up; where did the figures come from?
Alderman Wood requested an ending and a beginning balance be listed in the Budget.
Nancy Anderson referenced her teaching experience of high-level math, yet her inability to understand several areas of the budget. She cited the Motor Fuel Tax and the General Fund pertaning to the Communtiy Room allowance. “You can’t follow through” on these figures. In the latter example, “you’ve gone backward in revenue. Why? It’s not being used. Why? It’s in poor repair. Why?” she stated. “This is the best example of a shill game.” She urged Aldermen to “develop a format that is really easy to understand by everyone, not just the City Administrator. Please take your time, next time, [and] make it feasible to understand.”
No written statements had been submitted, so Mayor Drey closed the Public Hearing at 7:00.