By Terry Witt- Spotlight Senior Reporter

            Williston City Council members ironed out their $20.4 million budget for fiscal year 2022-23 in a workshop Thursday, proposing to retain a property tax rate of 6.75 mills but raise electric rates by 8.9 percent.

            The electric rate hike will come before the council on Tuesday for the first reading of an ordinance that would implement the increase. Council meetings are public and citizens can comment on the rate hike.

            The council traditionally has kept its property tax rate in check partly by transferring money from its utility fund to its general operating budget to cover certain budgeted expenses, but the transfer this year is the highest ever at $1.1 million.

            Williston operates city-owned gas and electric utilities as well as the traditional water and sewer utilities. It also has a large municipal airport for a city of its size that is selling nearly as much jet fuel as Ocala’s airport, according to Manager Benton Stegall.

            Payroll costs will rise by about $500,000 over last year.

            The city budget will increase by about $4.6 million over the current spending plan but a big chunk will come from grants to make improvements to Williston Municipal Airport. The airport has $4.4 million in grant-funded projects scheduled in the coming budget. It’s unlikely all of those projects will be done in 2023, but the money is set aside in this budget.

            Williston’s Community Redevelopment Agency is taking out a $1 million loan to make improvements to the old business district known as Block 12 including paving the parking lot. The Arcade will also be remodeled.

            City Financial Director Steven Bloom noted that revenues from the already approved gas utility rate hike and the proposed electric utility rate hike have been added to the city budget. Without the added revenue, he said it would leave a big hole in the city budget.

            Williston’s electric rates, as they stand now, are among the lowest in the state, but the city is in a growth spurt that will tax the ability of public works to meet the demands of residential and business growth without an increase in rates, city officials say. The rate hike is based on a study done by a consultant.

            The city is anticipating construction of 98 homes in a subdivision next door to Peggy O’Neill Basham Nature Park, a recreation area that explodes in color every spring when acres of flowering azalea bushes make their appearance.

            One small feature in the budget is a part-time animal shelter employee. Construction of the new animal services shelter is moving along rapidly at the airport. Mayor Charles Goodman, a retired contractor, is overseeing the project.

            One new police officer and five reserve officers are in the budget, and the city is also planning to borrow $400,000 to purchase a police and fire radio console. The city currently uses patrol car radios attached to the dispatch counter to stay in touch with officers patrolling city streets. The airport and public works will also use the radio console.

            The new radio console is being mandated by the state. The Levy County Commission is also being required by the state to change out its radio communications system. The commission will pay for the portable radios and car radios of city police departments around the county.

            State officials want all city police departments, sheriff’s offices, and Emergency Medical Services to be able to communicate on the same radio system, especially in times when there are emergencies like school shootings that require all departments to converge on a single scene quickly without communication failures.

            The proposed city budget has a relatively small pool of available cash reserves in the general operating budget for unexpected expenses. The reserve cash amounts to $671,000. The utility fund is expected to have a bigger cash reserve of $2.5 million to $3 million.

            Resident Albert Fuller reminded council members that 44 percent of the city’s residents live below the poverty line. He urged the board to be fiscally responsible and keep those in mind who can least afford to pay for increases in their city services.

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City of Williston Budget Meeting September 1, 2022; Posted September 1, 2022