Source: Garrett Creek Ranch Website

 
The Council is on retreat in Paradise, Texas. I enjoy the isolation, quiet, and even have a fondness for the almost non-existent cell phone service. But the primary topic this year is the financial state of the city. We're challenged in the best of times and these aren't the best of times.
 
We arrived from several directions before noon and will work through to Saturday afternoon. We first looked at the goals and vision we set two years ago, when I and several others were first elected to the Council, and we've done well. There is an optimism that I think is well deserved, among the Council, the staff, and the citizens.
 
Only one person has been on the Council over two years: Barbara Chick at three years. I think there is a comfortable level of trust among the Council members and with the staff. My sincere impression is that everyone wants to work to make Garland as good as we can. We discussed what we liked about the city and identified many, many aspects of Garland that are unique. Many of them are business aspects where products used all over the country and the world are manufactured only in Garland.
 
The rest of the day has been spent learning more about the financial challenges we have right now: declining residential values, stagnant retail sales, skyrocketing fuel costs, and a challenging national economy.
 

Bryan Bradford, Sr Managing Director, Budget and Research, presented a sobering synopsis. I've selected some slides from his presentation and those are available at the link to the right. We discussed a lot of scenarios to address these challenges and we will continue to work on them until September when we must adapt a budget.
 
We will have a revenue shortfall. We won't know how much tax revenue will be received until the Dallas Central Appraisal District nails its numbers in July but we're confident it will be close to what was received last year. That doesn't allow salary increases, fuel cost increases, or anything new. The total property tax base is projected to only grow 0.1%, and that is only because we had $239 million in new construction this year.
 
With very little more in revenues (taxes, fees, electric sales, and other) juxtaposed against rising expenses, we are currently looking at something around $5 million as the shortfall. Doesn't necessarily sound like much when you're dealing with a few million here and a few million there, but to make up that difference would require a 5¢/$100 tax increase, definitely shooting us very near the top in the Metroplex.
 
There was zero discussion of a tax increase for Operations & Maintenance and we really didn't discuss the debt service side. It's not off the table but I believe there is an understanding that its not an option.
 
So what's going to give? I think we'll have to look at alternative scenarios for many of the services we provide: how to reduce costs, possible restructuring in some areas, reducing certain services, foregoing some improvements for another year or more. It's not going to be easy but it has to be done. That's what we were elected to do, to make the decisions that are in the best interest of the citizens.
 
Our challenges this year and probably next are virtually no different than other cities are facing. We are probably better off than a large number of them. We've never been highly dependent on sales tax, for example. When those cities are suffering the worst, we've been able to keep close to the same level of services. So don't give up hope and move — you'd probably be moving out of the frying pan into the fire.
 
We have a great community and we have a great future. We just have to tighten our belts right now so that we can realize that future sooner rather than mortgaging it now.
 
I encourage every resident to stay tuned during this budgeting process and to participate in the hearings and community discussions. If we have to cut services, we need to work together to decide which ones and how much. We need to understand the necessity of such cuts and the trade-offs.
 
I'm still totally committed that we Grow the City — our property values, our business sales, and our quality of life. My caution in this process will be to preserve the budget items and expenses that help us to continue to grow our value. I'll be looking for sound investments that have a positive return, like preserving the improving look of our city and maintaining our efforts to attract development, that "new construction" that keeps bringing up the base.