Mayor Jim Gray releases budget highlights

The proposed budget is a $324 million dollar spending plan, that focuses on 5 major areas:

• Transformational Investments – These include $22 million for the Old Courthouse, $10 million for Town Branch Commons, $1 million for Bluegrass Community & Technical College’s Newtown branch expansion, and $750,000 to study the relocation of City Hall.
• Infrastructure – $10 million for road paving, $160,000 for a traffic signal at I-75 and Man O’ War Blvd., as well as funding to continue planning for the "Gigabit City initiative.
• Public Safety – Funding for 10 new police officers, $2.5 million for new police vehicles, funding for police body cameras, $2.8 million for new fire vehicles, $1.5 million to upgrade jail management system technology, and $5.2 million to complete the Public Safety Operations Center.
• Community and Social Services – $3 million for social services partner agencies (25% dedicated to emergency shelter funding,) creation of new Substance Abuse Violence Intervention Office, (with focus on heroin addiction,) $2.75 million for initiatives in the offices of Affordable Housing and Homelessness Prevention, operating funds for new Senior Citizens Center at Idle Hour Park.
• Parks and Recreation – $250,000 for development of a Parks Master Plan, funding for study of a new multi-use sports complex, $1.9 million for parks projects (including Woodland Park playground,) Veterans Park playground, tennis courts at Ecton Park, tennis courts at Southland Park, concession stand and restrooms at Martin Luther King Park, restrooms at Lansdowne-Merrick Park, Highlands Park trail, Valley Park skate pad, and Douglass Park landscaping and court improvements.

The new fiscal year begins July 1.