Jobs and Several City Programs Lost to Buena Park Budget Cuts

By the time city officials finished cutting $500,000 from the current year’s budget this week, four employees were destined for layoff, three other positions were eliminated and a host of civic programs, including the popular Citizens Police Academy, were history.

But the cuts, painful as they were for City Council members to make, will allow the city to adopt a budget Sept. 3. The city has been operating off emergency appropriations while the final cuts were made to balance the budget, which now will come in at just under $39 million.

A survivor of the session was the Silverado Days celebration, which draws residents together for three days each fall at a festival ending with a large parade.

But many other programs and positions did go as the city gears up to meet a $2-million deficit over the next several years. Revenues have dipped because the state is keeping more taxes, costs have risen higher than income, and onetime sources of revenue, such as rebates from the state retirement system, are drying up, said City Manager Kevin O’Rourke.

Among the most serious budget deletions are salaries for two public works employees and the counselor for a widely used employee assistance program.

A number of positions will be cut and replaced with part-time workers, and the Cultural Arts Foundation will no longer be funded. A summer program at the Teen Center, Halloween and Easter programs for children and the Club Dare program also have been cut.

All of the cuts will permanently reduce the budget, in contrast to previous reductions which did not carry over, officials said.