The Goshen Common Council unanimously approved the city’s 2023 budget Monday. It’s just under $62 million, around $10 million less than last year.
Mayor Jeremy Stutsman said it’s the first step in bringing the annual budget back down to a more normal level after increases due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Goshen’s cash reserves shot up significantly in 2020 after officials pulled back on spending — they hit around 135 percent, much higher than the recommended state level of 15 to 50 percent. The city then began spending those dollars down to catch up on projects that were delayed or postponed, so the 2022 budget was about 30 percent higher than 2021.
The 2023 budget is about 15 percent higher than 2021 — a 50 percent decrease. And Stutsman says around $3.3 million of the $61,949,059 budget is American Rescue Plan funding, which must have projects picked by 2024 and be spent by 2026.
“So, we’re actually getting pretty close to our past yearly budgets already,” Stutsman said.
The budget includes money for repaving neighborhood streets, upgrading parks and public safety equipment, 3.5 percent raises for all city staff and creative ideas to bring new housing to the city and rebuild from blight created by slumlords.
Contact Jakob at jlazzaro@wvpe.org or follow him on Twitter at @JakobLazzaro.
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