City Council held a Budget Workshop on Monday, December 9, after the regular City Council Meeting. The council heard from multiple people about the effects of closing down the pool and discussed in-depth options for keeping it open. Deciding the future of the pool while in a budget crisis has been a task that the council has struggled with meeting after meeting, and tonight, they had two options they needed to choose from to move forward. The levy without the pool would be 22.2% and with the pool, 27.45%. City Administrator Jeff Shoobridge breaks down the council’s decision for us. “The council is moving forward with maintaining the pool as an operating facility,” says Shoobridge. “What that means in the short run is, yes, the pool will still be open for 2025, the tax rate is going to be a 27.45% increase in order to balance the budget with those operating costs in we do have to go to our maximum preliminary levy,” Shoobridge says this levy will impact the residents, but it will provide us the ability to keep the pool functioning and open as an amenity for our residents. “I know that’s been a very hot button topic in the area, it was just simply which direction do we want to go, “says Shoobridge. “The council has given us that direction, so now we will put that into place.”
