GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Grand Rapids is gearing up to spend more money this year than last as the city announces its latest budget.
Tuesday morning, City Manager Mark Washington told city leaders this year’s proposed spending plan would be $643 million.
The city’s focus is on strategic objectives and essential services for 2024.
“The FY2024 fiscal plan continues investments aligned with our values and balances the many challenging and polarizing issues by being both be safe and compassionate, prosperous and equitable, growing and sustainable, practical and transformational,” Washington said.
The city had six over-arching strategic properties that led to this year’s plan: Governmental Excellence, Economic Prosperity and Affordability, Engaged and Connected Community, Health and Environment, Mobility, and Safe Community, Washington added.
The city points to key highlights in this year’s budget, including $139 million to “Safe Community,” $46 million for corridor improvements, and $19 million to improving several main parks.
The data shown at the budget presentation showed Police Services for FY2024 is to use 35.1% of the General Operating Fund, which equals around $63 million, Washington told FOX 17.
When GR announced its budget last year, leaders showed that the Grand Rapids Police Department saw a decrease in its overall budget.
In FY2021, GRPD’s budget was 38.6% of the General Operating Fund, but in FY2023, it made up 34.2%.
"A large majority of the cost for police is labor costs that's been driven by contracts pay and benefits. There's no additional staffing for police officers, the staffing levels remain the same," Washington said. "We have taken a very holistic approach to looking at the whole of government, and how we provide services to all of our community using all available revenue sources."
A grant will help pay for most of the $800,000 Cure Violence program— an initiative that is working to reduce violence among the city's youth. There's also a push to hire more staff for the Homeless Outreach Team.
The parks department will rely significantly on American Rescue Plan funds for further enhancements. Plans already in the works include spending $10.7 million on the Martin Luther King Lodge— $10.5 million of that will come from ARPA money. The budget also indicates $4.5 million in ARPA funds that will go toward Roosevelt Lodge.
"We've also had our $176,000 for expansion of Wi-Fi in the parks. We started that during the pandemic," Washington said.
As for fixing the roads in the city, the Vital Streets Program looks to spend about $27.6 million. The report shows this would cover about 81 projects for 32 miles of streets, including larger projects on Michigan Street and Cesar E. Chavez.
In 2023 the city’s preliminary budget was roughly about $597 million, which would mean FY24 is roughly $46 million more.
"We've implemented some pretty substantial increases in pay for employees so a lot of it is personnel," Washington added.
City leaders have more time to discuss and hear from community members before adopting the budget. They have several meetings scheduled before giving their approval:
- Tuesday, May 2 at 9 a.m.: Budget Review Workshop
- Tuesday, May 9 at 10 a.m.: City Commission Committee of the Whole
- Tuesday, May 16 at 9 a.m.: Budget Review Workshop (if needed)
- Tuesday, May 23 at 10 a.m.: Budget Discussion and Deliberation (Committee of the Whole)
- Tuesday, May 23 at 7 p.m.: City Commission Adoption
Read the full budget presentation below:
FY24 Preliminary Fiscal Plan (1) by WXMI on Scribd
