By Cynthia Daniels
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Copyright 2006 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The city of Sandy Springs expects to end this fiscal year with an additional $2 million in revenues. And city officials already know how they’d like to spend it.
On the short list: additional police officers, three quick-response vehicles and an Emergency Medical Services program.
The city’s 2007 budget planned for $70 million in revenues and expenditures, but a $2 million bump in real estate taxes and a $3.8 million decrease in the insurance premium tax provided for some changes in the budget and still resulted in an extra $2,086,322 to spend or save.
The city plans to spend.
But that spending will leave a zero balance in the city’s fund reserve, City Manager John McDonough told the City Council during its Thursday night work session.
“But we believe we won’t spend all our expenditures,” McDonough said.
“We also believe fiscal year ’09 will be a lot rosier. We believe we’ll have a lot more revenue.”
The proposed spending plan would give $1.5 million to the police department for 11 additional patrol officers, three new detective positions, five traffic officer positions (one of which will be paid for through a state grant) and one officer to organize property and evidence.
Since the department began operations July 1, McDonough said, already:
* Officers in surrounding communities, such as Smyrna, Marietta and Roswell, respond to about 95 calls a month each, while Sandy Springs police officers respond to 108 calls per month.
* Detectives are averaging 70 cases a month and need additional people to start solving some of the crimes.
* There were 2,332 traffic incidents in the city from July to the end of October.
“Our whole philosophy is to try to be proactive --- this is being reactive,” McDonough said. “By adding these people, we’re definitely going to be able to improve.”
Much of the remainder of the city’s extra funds --- $472,510 --- will go toward its fire department, slated to begin around Dec. 28, and its Emergency Medical Services program.
The city plans to spend about $72,772 to lease three sport-utility vehicles for use as quick response vehicles that will respond to emergency medical calls instead of firetrucks.
It will spend $270,096 on EMS start-up, including $5,200 for CPR classes for the public, police officers and firefighters and $100,961 for EMS supplies.
In order to find and retain quality paramedics, McDonough said, $80,000 should go toward paying the medical responders an initial $2,000 bonus and $2,000 every six months.
“It’s tough,” City Councilman Rusty Paul said. “Given where we are today, this is probably the best set of priorities we could come up with.”
The council will hold a budget workshop on Dec. 5 and will vote on the budget changes at its Dec. 19 meeting.