CITY MANAGER’S UPDATE
Brian Dossey, City Manager
Happy Summer! With Summer comes the Town’s new fiscal year – which begins July 1. In preparation for the new fiscal year, the City Council approves the Town’s annual budget in June. The annual budget hearing is the culmination of many months of hard work by Colma staff, and the document reflects the Council’s commitment to providing high quality services to our residents.
The good news is that the Town’s financial picture continues to be stable. This is due in no small part to the City Council’s financial prudence and staff’s hard work and commitment, which has left us with an operating surplus of just over $2 million for FY2018-19. However, this does not include capital investments of $6.4 million.
For FY2019-20 the Town anticipates receiving $19.75 million in revenues for all funds and spending $20.1 million in Operating ($18.7 million) and Capital ($1.4 million) expenditures. The budget also expects a transfer of $1.7 million from the General Fund to finance Capital Improvement Projects and debt service.
Historically the Town has estimated revenues conservatively and with an uncertain economic future, the Town is estimating revenues to come in slightly less than FY2018-19. The largest revenue source for the Town is Sales Tax and represents 59 percent of the total General Fund revenue. The estimated Sales Tax revenue for FY2019-20 is $11.4 million – a decrease of approximately $200,000 compared to the FY 2018-19 Estimated Budget. Cardroom Tax revenue is the second largest source, which represents 22 percent of General Fund revenue. The FY 2018-19 Adopted Budget assumes the Town will receive $4.3 million, which is $100,000 less than current estimates for FY 2017-18.
The FY 2019-20 Budget anticipates adding $780,000 into the General Fund Reserves. This is a representation of the financial prudence of the City Council and Town Staff in containing costs wherever possible. For more information on the budget please visit the Town’s website at https://www.colma.ca.gov/budget/.
Also, don’t forget to attend the Community Fair on Saturday, July 13 at the Colma Community Center, 1520 Hillside Blvd., from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm. Enjoy live music, arts & crafts, and fitness. There will be over 40 craft vendors, local businesses, food and activities for all. For more information please contact the Recreation Services Department at (650) 985-5690.
POLICE DEPARTMENT UPDATE
Kirk Stratton, Chief of Police
This month I would like to highlight the proactive police work our men and women have been doing daily to keep those who live, work and visit the Town of Colma safe. As you are all aware, the safety and protection of those we serve is a priority. Colma is a safe community but it is not immune to contemporary policing issues such as theft and drug offenses. Our goal is to improve quality of life through strong community relations. We do this with our involvement in the community by attending various community events, and by conducting business checks and residential checks. The presence of our officers at these events and our proactive patrols allow us to get to know our residents and business community on a personal level. Building these important relationships takes effort. The Colma Police Department visited the residential areas of our Town over 3,000 times and our commercial district over 2,900 times in 2018. Colma Police Department staff attended 119 community events in 2018 to include National Night Out and the Colma Community Fair.
This type of output continues to build partnerships with the community we serve and helps keep crime rates low. For example, Colma had (16) vehicle burglaries last year compared to San Francisco County which experienced over 2,000 per month in 2018. (NBC Bay Area) Although one is too many, our low number is attributed to our police presence in the commercial and residential areas of Town. The Colma Police Department also uses social media platforms to educate and inform the community on crime trends and to provide safety tips. To stay connected to Police Department activity and safety tips please follow us on Twitter at @ColmaPD or Colma Police Department Facebook.
We value our partnerships with the community, and we will continue our efforts to improve the quality of life by providing a safe environment for all who live, visit and work in the Town of Colma.