Proposed sales tax is discussed in city meeting

SIKESTON - The city's one-cent general revenue sales tax proposal invites the question: For what?

"If you increase sales tax by one penny, what are you going to do with the money?" is what residents are asking, according to City Manager Doug Friend. "The primary concern that I've heard is the reserves are going to be built up and that we don't have a plan for those reserves."

Friend said while the proposal asks for one cent, if approved it will only end up being a half cent increase in sales tax with present sales taxes ending soon. The SAHEC sales tax expires Sept. 30, he explained, and the city's capital improvement sales tax expires Dec. 31, 2005.

If the new general revenue tax is approved, it will go into effect the day after the SAHEC tax expires Oct. 1, 2004, but revenues will not be received by the city until January 2005.

Friend presented Council members with figures including estimates for revenues if the tax is approved along with proposed expenditures for the next ten fiscal years.

In following this plan the city will "never have any more than six months of working reserve in a fund," Friend said.

Funding for the LCRA begins at $500,000 per year for the first three years then drops to $100,000 in the fourth and following years.

The plan also calls for an increase in personnel at DPS, according to Friend, to achieve "optimal manpower needs for the Department of Public Safety."

Director of Public Safety Drew Juden said revenue slated for his department during the first year or 18 months would be used to rebuild his staff "just to get us back up to where we were two years ago."

The projected figures are just staff's "best guess," Friend said. "These things certainly may change - probably will change," he said. "I believe this is a very realistic plan - our numbers are conservative."

The Land Clearance Redevelopment Authority board has not yet presented city staff with a budget, according to Friend. The Authority's needs have been projected by using $10,000 as the cost of demolishing a house, but a lot of things are not factored in, he said.

Friend also suggested making roundtable meetings with citizens part of an "annual process" for setting spending priorities. "I think we need to continue that."

Mayor Mike Marshall said that once the LCRA's funding drops from $500,000 to $100,000, future City Councils will have opportunities.

"That's when I think Council will try to initiate what I call 'impact project - things that cost a lot of money that are good for the community," the mayor said.

Marshall said that unlike restricted fund taxes such as the transportation tax, this would provide "flexibility to manage affairs."

Revenue from the sales tax would be used to restore "many of the things we've cut over the past year," Friend said.

Estimates for expanding the Sikeston Area Higher Education Center by eight classrooms rose from $1.2 million to $2 million.

It is up to city officials to "put the facts out like they really are" as some of the information circulating is "flat wrong," Marshall said. "I think our intentions are clear: We want to move the city forward, and this is a plan."

In other business during Monday's special session, Juden advised Council members that DPS will participate in the National Guard ceremony for those who are about to be deployed, including DPS employees.

The ceremony is scheduled for 4 p.m. Saturday at the Sikeston High School Field House.

City Council members also received a Five-Year Capital Improvement Program plan with projections applying to Fiscal Year 2004 through FY-2009; approved a bill authorizing the acquisition of property owned by Riggs adjacent to the Public Works Complex; and received briefings on business to be addressed during the next regular session Monday.