Complete Document - City of Auburn

Budget Message (continued) May 28, 2002problems with the downtown restaurant-lounges. You have also recognized the value ofthe many military veterans in Auburn by the construction of the Veterans Monument.Importantly, you have dealt with issues that will face Auburn in the future. You discussedthe question of growth in detail through consideration of the Growth Boundary Study. Youauthorized the Auburn Centers study, the Outer Loop Road study, the ten-year trafficengineering study, the Storm Drainage study, and the Land Use Plan update. Thedecisions you have made on streets were based on the Major Street Plan, sewers on thelong-range Sewer Plan, and all projects on the Capital Improvements Program. The City isnot strictly reacting to immediate problems but is placing them within long-term plans ineach of these critical areas.On-Going Projects - The City has many projects that are underway that will becompleted by the end of FY 02 or will be under construction during the next few months thatmay not be completed until FY 03 or FY 04. They include the following:- Expansion of the H.C. Morgan wastewater treatment plant- Construction of major sewer lines in west and southwest Auburn- Wrights Mill Road paving and bikeway construction- Skateboard park at the Frank Brown Recreation Center- Bragg Avenue and South College Street (Shug Jordan Parkway to Veterans Parkway)sidewalk projects- South College Street landscaping project- Drainage projects at Glenn Avenue/Debardeleben Avenue, Prather’s Lake, Felton LittlePark, Tacoma Drive, North College Street/Sanders Street, Toomer Street, White Streetand Boykin Street- Development Services Building renovation- Public Safety Administration Building renovation- Police Building renovation- FY 02 Street resurfacing and striping project- Auburn Centers planning project- Land Use planning project- Outer Loop Road study and presentation- 911 Communications Center modernizationCouncil PrioritiesThe Council provides the direction for the staff in a number of essential ways. Oneof the important things that you do is to set priorities that the staff strives to reflect in thebudget that we develop and present to you. Especially helpful are the comments that youinclude on your priority rating sheets. They give us a better understanding of the issuesand projects you consider most pressing. The final budget approved by the Council isbased on a consensus of the members. Not every project or funding level by everymember of Council is included in the budget but through priority setting, we can learn thejudgment of the Council as a whole. Over the four years, you have been consistent in yourranking of priorities. For the next biennium, you have placed the needs of the community inthis order:1. School Funding2. Employee Pay Raises23