By Goodyear Mayor Georgia Lord

 
The Goodyear City Council is set to begin budget talks in April, an important time of year when we look at how to the city is going to spend taxpayer money and make the most of the funds we have available.

As we discuss how to spend those dollars and city departments submit their goals and needs for Council consideration, we plan to continue to follow the philosophy that has worked well for us in the past: Stay conservative and hold the line on spending.

The last five years have presented challenging financial times for families and businesses as well as the city and the state. But, as the country begins to emerge and recover from the economic downturn, we will continue to look for innovative ways to better position ourselves for continued growth and economic prosperity.

Our fiscal outlook is “cautiously optimistic” as reported to the City Council at the mid-year financial update in February. Revenue estimates are up for the third straight year.

We will have the opportunity to address some needs that have been on the radar for a while as well as a few amenities for the community using one-time funds – specifically construction sales tax and fund balance from this year that will help us maintain services and improve our roads such as Loma Linda and Goodyear Boulevard. We also will invest in our infrastructure when necessary.

Those forthcoming projects have been made possible in part by the city reorganizing and streamlining some of its internal operations. Some of these cost-cutting measures have included installing a new city-wide phone system and recycling wastewater to reduce watering costs for the grounds at the spring training facilities. These methods will help the city to save thousands of dollars and allow us to invest in other projects for the city.

Goodyear is continuing to grow, and we have seen more houses and commercial industry coming in over the past year, which is great news. The growth also comes with added responsibility to provide services.

We encourage residents to attend any of our Council meetings, especially throughout the budgeting process and visit www.goodyearaz.gov  so you know when those meetings are so you can come see how we wisely decide to spend your hard-earned taxpayer dollars.