City Budget Review To Begin This Week

by Gabe BullardThe Louisville Metro Council's Budget Committee will begin reviewing the mayor's proposed budget this week. Council members are planning an extensive review, though the process may not be as difficult as it was last year.Last year's budget anticipated a drop in revenues and made cuts accordingly. The council spent much of its two week review process deciding whether those cuts were prudent. The proposed budget for the next fiscal year maintains the previous cuts, but anticipates a slight increase in revenue.Budget Committee vice chair Kelly Downard says while there isn't any call for deeper cuts or enough growth for much new spending, there's still room to make changes in the budget, if necessary."I think there's a lot of movement between bond issues and capital projects and I know that's something the council's going to take a very hard look at, make sure that our priorities are in sync with the administration's priorities," he says. "They will be in many cases, and sometimes they might not be."The capital projects in the budget include libraries, a vehicle maintenance facility and a pedestrian bridge downtown. The council will hold two public forums and several meetings with city officials on the budget over the next two weeks.