No Comment: Citizenry Silent on Municipal Budget

It was a momentous night.

On the calendar date 11/1/11, Wauwatosa Mayor Jill Didier started out the Common Council meeting Tuesday by announcing that for the first time, the proceedings would be live-streamed from the council chambers on the city's website.

Whether anyone was watching was a different matter.

It is a matter of record, though, that no one showed up to speak either for or against any item or the whole of the city's 2012 budget in the final public hearing it will get before adoption two weeks hence — on Nov. 15.

Two reporters were present to hear City Administrator Jim Archambo make a brief presentation on how city staff had turned a projected $2.6 million financial gap into a balanced budget.

That gap was filled by switching to a higher-deductible health plan for city employees, saving $1.2 million; by $1 million in salary savings through a pay freeze and reductions in positions and reclassifications; and through the recovery of $500,000 in aid returned from the state since the initial projections were made during the contentious and confusing battle over the state budget repair bill.

Archambo said that, in the longer term, those moves also had shaved $3 million off what was a projected $8 million shortfall over five years.

Despite a state-imposed property tax levy freeze, Archambo said, there will be an added impact of about $29 on the average homeowner because of slight fluctuations in equalized and assessed property values in the city.

Waiting on the state

In other action Tuesday, the city adopted a redistricting plan for election of municipal officials but, on the advice of the city attorney, did not make it effective immediately but rather concurrent with the state legislative redistricting plan, whenever it takes effect.

City Attorney Alan Kesner said that the city "can't have different districts" than the state, so there would be no point in adopting the aldermanic redistricting plan from this date. Wauwatosa can, however, adopt its plan now but dated to take effect when the state adopts its plan.

The city's plan could be amended if the state should impose different districts than would fit with Wauwatosa's aldermanic plan.

Flattening block grant funding

Ald. Jacqueline Jay proposed a successful amendment to the sharing of Community Development Block Grant funds among perennial applicants to stave off a 16 percent across-the-board cut to recipients in the Public Service category.

Essentially, Jay recommended that all recipients take a small cut, while those that had applied for much larger shares this year than in the past — notably Tosa Cares, which had asked for a 50 percent increase — settle for less.

The amendment passed unanimously, except for Ald. Peter Donegan, who voted "present." Ald. Nikcevich and Wilke were not present for the meeting.