As the Ketchikan City Council wrapped up its 2015 budget process in late December, members approved a final motion to decrease supplies and other services across-the-board by 5 percent.
Because the ramifications of that reduction weren’t known, the Council asked City Manager Karl Amylon to bring details back to the first meeting in January. That meeting it set for this Thursday, and Amylon reports that he left it up to department heads to make the necessary cuts.
Many of the cuts include office supplies, equipment replacement and maintenance, training and public announcements.
Amylon notes that grants to community nonprofit agencies were cut by about $18,000, and the city’s contribution to the Ketchikan Visitors Bureau was cut by $8,550. Building maintenance accounts also were cut, but he warns that maintenance reductions might not be a good idea.
Ketchikan Public Library Director Linda Lyshol submitted a memo to the Council asking that the library be exempt from the 5 percent reduction.
Starting with the 2015 budget cycle, the library has started offering Sunday hours again, and Lyshol argues that the expense of the added day already stretched the library’s budget too thin.
The City Council will consider the proposed cuts on Thursday. Once a decision is reached, the 2015 City of Ketchikan budget will be finalized.
