With just eight days left to go before the start of the new fiscal year, the Evanston City Council held a special meeting this morning to try to reach final agreement on a budget. Here’s a recap of our live coverage.
With just eight days left to go before the start of the new fiscal year, the Evanston City Council held a special meeting this morning to try to reach final agreement on a budget. Here’s a recap of our live coverage.
Over nearly four-and-a-half hours, the aldermen voted to increase spending by a net amount of $70,000. They restored two forestry jobs and dropped a 5 percent pay cut for second-level managers, but added a fifth unpaid holiday to the city calendar.
After suggesting the public and press have paid too much attention to the branch library issue, the aldermen spent about 90 minutes discussing it again themselves, ultimately making no change in their plan to give branch library supporters six months to come up with sufficient private funds to cover branch library operations.
The aldermen postponed a possible final vote on the budget until Monday, to give them time to review the city manager’s proposed reductions to the city’s capital spending plans.
Libraries
I think it a joke that this council thinks it can keep these branches open for six months pending some sort of community bail out miracle… and I think the bigest joker of them all has to be Alderman Wynne for even floating this idea… These branch libraries are no more than reading rooms… I have been to both these braches numerous times to find them void of any patrons at all. I think their supporters are few in number in comparison to the overwhelming majority of residents who are more concerend about the importance of front line services like police, fire, garbage, snow removal, health, etc. What impresses Evanstonians more is the ability to balance a budget and stop the deficit spending as opposed to placating a few rich snobs on the north side and lake front. Give it a break folks and lets focus on economic development and the plight of our collective neighborhoods hit so hard by the economy and home foreclosures.