PEORIA, Ill.– Budget talks continued Tuesday night with the Peoria City Council.
City Manager Patrick Urich presented council members with four different scenarios on what could be done to make cuts to the budget.
The scenarios ranged from plans with no cuts to operations, cutting $5 million in operations, cutting $10 million in operations, and cutting $15 million in operations.
“We presented the four alternatives, all of them included $40 million worth of borrowing in addition to the operating reductions,” Urich said.
Urich said the scenario with $5 million in cuts, would include 75 position reductions.
“The second ($10 million) included 99 position reductions and the third ($15 million) included 150 position reductions,” Urich said.
The discussion Tuesday night lead to trying to reduce operating cuts without cutting jobs.
“There’s not a lot of interest in borrowing money and having to pay that money back using taxes,” Urich said. “Council has a lot of work ahead of it.”
The cuts would include reductions to the police and fire departments.
Peoria Police Chief Loren Marion III said the department is currently short 16 positions.
“Every unit/division of the department would be touched. The services we currently provide today would not look the same,” Marion said.
Peoria Fire Chief Tony Ardis said the fire department is also short on positions.
“We are currently short three people from our compliment. We have two more members planning on retiring in early June. And, then we have two members who are waiting a pension decision,” Ardis said. “So that’s seven.”
Reductions to the fire department would also reduce several machines along with firefighter/paramedics.
Urich said that no one wants to cut jobs.
“It’s a concern for us, it’s a concern for everyone. Public safety is very important to a community,” Urich said.
With the deficit the city is facing of over $40 million, Urich said there is not way to get around it without cutting operations.
“What the council is facing right now are difficult choices that nobody likes any of the alternatives,” Urich said.
The council did not vote to move forward with any of the scenarios that were presented to them. The first council meeting in May will be on Tuesday the 12th.
The council did approve an extension of the declaration of the local state of emergency.
