DANA POINT : City Council OKs ‘Conservative’ Budget

Although news from Sacramento indicates city revenue will not be cut as severely as expected, the City Council approved what was called a “conservative” $10.25-million general fund budget this week.

The council on Tuesday voted 3 to 2 to approve the fiscal year 1993-94 budget that includes $40,000 for next year’s Festival of Whales. City Councilmen Mike Eggers and William L. Ossenmacher cast the dissenting votes.

Before the vote, City Manager David Elbaum told the council that the state may not take as much of the city’s property tax revenue as expected. Instead of the $340,000 loss the city had anticipated, the latest report from the League of California Cities suggested that Dana Point may lose $98,000, a figure Elbaum characterized as still “significant.”

“It looks like we could be in pretty good shape considering what we included in our budget,” Elbaum told the council.

The city budget reflects a decrease of about $250,000 from last year, according to Rita L. Geldert, director of finance and administration. To compensate, the city reduced staffing by six positions and cut travel, meeting, conference and staff training expenses, Geldert said.

A major portion of the city’s revenue comes from bed taxes from the city’s 10 hotels (32%), with the balance from sales taxes (18% to 19%) and property taxes (13%), Geldert said.

Ossenmacher and Eggers asked for a reduction in the Festival of Whales funding but their request was defeated by another 3-2 vote.

“I look at (the festival) more as an investment than as an expense because we have such a high rate of return from it,” said City Councilwoman Eileen Krause of the festival subsidy.

Ossenmacher painted a gloomy picture for the future of the city if expenses are not cut.

“We are headed for financial disaster within the next four years,” Ossenmacher said. “Four years from now I don’t know if we’ll be able to fill potholes.”