From the desk of the Mayor…
Mayoral Minutes
Your city’s budget is the most important item voted on each year. It lays out a plan for how a city intends to address the current and future needs of a community, using the public’s money to do so. It is more complex than you may imagine, balancing the needs of citizens, employees, and businesses alike.
I am happy to report that at our June City Council meeting, Fountain Inn unanimously passed our budget for fiscal year 2021-2022, starting July 1. It is a budget that makes necessary investments in our capacity to continue delivering high quality public services, creates a stronger workplace environment, and provides the public with a clear path forward for the year.
Fountain Inn’s FY2022 budget includes the following highlights:
● No tax increase.
● Financing for a new Public Works and Natural Gas facility.
These two departments have not only outgrown their space, but their facility simply cannot adequately provide the level of service our citizens deserve. We’ll be working on designs this year and hopefully breaking ground sooner than later.
Employee needs
Employee retention and recruitment is a key component to every budget we’ve passed. This year, we’ve included a cost of living increase, and have moved everyone to the state health insurance plan – both of which will help employees take home more for their families.
Infrastructure improvements
Our Natural Gas department will see some major investments to secure the future of our gas utility. We will be creating a secondary feed to our entire system to ensure continuity if something were to happen to our main line. Additionally, last year we increased our local road funding, a level we are maintaining in our new budget.
Community Beautification
We will finally be finishing off the rest of our Main Street renovation project. From Jones Street to Highway 418 will be brought up to the standard of the rest of Main Street. Additionally, we’re making sure our Public Works department has the equipment they need to replace aging equipment used to keep up with yard debris pick up and more.
This is a budget that Fountain Inn can be proud of – it sets a plan for the future of our community, a plan that ensures we can maintain the quality of life that we all love.
A big thank you goes out to our Assistant City Adminis- trator and Finance Director, Naomi Reed, our department heads, and our City Adminis- trator Shawn Bell for work- ing hard on this year’s budget.
Mayor GP McLeer■
