The Public Works budget, with proposed Fiscal Year 2024 (FY24) expenditures of $4,573,400, is the fourth largest in the city budget. Department leadership met with the Greenbelt City Council on April 19 to discuss this budget. Two of the department’s responsibilities – parks maintenance (proposed expenditures $1.6 million) and the Greenbelt Connection ($136,100 expenditures, $7,400 revenue) – are included in other budget categories and thus not part of the Public Works budget. Staffing levels will remain unchanged for now although more staff will likely be needed in the future.
Director’s Comments
Director of Public Works Willis Shafer gave an overview of the department’s budget. The current budget year started with the July 12 storm which downed a great many trees throughout the city and crowded out many other priorities such as street projects and fall plantings as workers joined together to help address tree issues throughout the city. As a result, the department is maintaining the same goals and strategic plan as in FY23.
Another large chunk of time was spent managing American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) projects led by Assistant Director Brian Kim. Staff, led by Sustainability Coordinator Luisa Robles, successfully applied for a USDA grant to pilot a curbside food waste composting program.
Priorities for the next fiscal year, which begins July 1, include rebuilding the front of the stage in the Old Greenbelt Theatre and modifying it to allow for wheelchair accessibility.
The department’s goals include hauling 2,000 yards of mulch during FY24 from Northway Fields to the county composting facility and seeking a better way of managing the Northway site, which is subject to a lot of illegal dumping. Other goals include continuing to attract and maintain a diverse workforce and strengthening the department’s succession plan. He praised the assistant directors for their work in filling departmental vacancies.
The Northway Fields comments resonated with Councilmember Rodney Roberts. He called for eliminating all nonrecreational use of the Northway site, noting that materials (such as asphalt millings) deposited there encouraged further dumping. He also called for more natural alternatives when the concrete swales are replaced. Shafer thought that is possible.
Administration
The largest account in the department’s budget is Administration with proposed expenditures of $1.7 million, a 7.7 percent increase from the current fiscal year’s adopted budget. This account covers a wide range of activities including overall department management, sustainability efforts, building maintenance and utility services. Goals for the coming fiscal year include managing ARPA projects, reducing greenhouse gas generation and electricity usage and promoting recycling and development of the citywide food waste collection program.
Street Maintenance
Street maintenance is the second biggest line item with proposed expenditures of $1.2 million, an increase of 10.3 percent over FY23. Because many street projects are funded through other mechanisms, total street maintenance expenditures are $2.4 million with the additional expenditures funded by highway tax revenues ($715,700), a federal Community Development Block Grant ($120,500) and general city revenues.
Objectives in this budget account include replacing street signage to comply with federal standards, assessing street and sidewalk conditions to develop the paving schedule, shortening the annual leaf collection schedule by condensing routes and completing two collections in each section by December 31 and resurfacing Springhill Lane from Breezewood Drive to Market Street.
Shafer alerted council that, at current funding levels, the department will not be able to meet council’s goal of paving one mile of city streets per year. He felt strongly that the city needs to start investing more in its concrete infrastructure although this is not funded in the proposed budget. His goal is to look at all city roadways and develop a better 26-year plan. Shafer said the department will also implement preventive measures as preventive street maintenance costs one-thirtieth of the cost of street reconstruction.
Waste Collection
The third largest budget component is waste collection with proposed expenditures of $930,600, a 20 percent increase over the current budget. This is partially offset by an estimated $748,900 in revenues (refuse collection fees, recycling fees, sale of recyclable materials and landfill disposal rebate) leaving a deficit of revenues over expenditures of $181,700, up from the current year’s estimated deficit of $22,800 ($29,300 vs. the adopted budget). Councilmember Judith Davis suggested council consider raising fees.
Other Accounts
The remaining accounts in this budget include Equipment maintenance ($392,200), Roosevelt Center ($166,500), Street Cleaning ($145,400) and the city cemetery ($5,800).
ARPA
While ARPA projects are not accounted for in the city budget, Public Works staff will continue to be involved in planning and managing many of these projects.
Solar Power
Robles said that the Solar Farm is expected to come online in the first quarter of calendar 2024. The farm should provide 60 to 80 percent of the electricity used by the city.
It is unlikely that the city will be installing solar panels on more city buildings, Robles said. When last examined, few buildings had the orientation and tree canopy (or lack thereof) needed for solar generation.
Electric Vehicles
Interim City Manager Timothy George said a team is looking at 5- and 10-year goals for transitioning the city vehicle fleet to electric or hybrid vehicles. For the police department, he said, the command staff now has hybrid vehicles but there is a large backlog on police vehicles. The proposed budget includes funding to expand Electric Vehicle (EV) infrastructure for city vehicles. Staff is working on a separate plan for public EV infrastructure.
Trees and Ballfields
Council allocated $2.3 million for ballfields. George said that it may be necessary to take some ballfields offline for a year so that newly planted grass can take hold. Roberts challenged this, asking why the city would not sod the fields to reduce downtime. Shafer promised to consult with experts on this issue and to present a plan to council.