Maryville leaders approve $34.4 M budget

The Maryville City Council approved the balanced 2018 budget which begins Sunday, October 1, during its regular city council meeting September 25.

The revenue equals the expenses for a total budget of $34,422,986.

The budget includes a 2.5 percent cost of living adjustment for employee wages. However, there will be no merit increases.

One of the main goals of the coming year’s capital projects is to maintain and improve the infrastructure throughout the city with $305,000 for waterline updates and $1,045,000 for sewer lines, lift stations and inflow and infiltration improvements.

Other goals include establishing the Mozingo Conference Center as a regional asset and facilitating the construction of a new $4 million Maryville Public Safety facility. This facility has a projected construction date of April 2018 according to City Manager Greg McDanel.

Other initiatives budgeted for the year include a $1,086,000 apron repair project at Northwest Missouri Regional Airport, a $12,000 airport maintenance shed and $60,000 for the construction of a Mozingo monument sign along Highway 136.

The capital improvement fund includes $1,500,000 for asphalt overlay and concrete street repairs.

The Mozingo Lake Recreation Park budget includes $50,000 for advertising, $80,000 for pro-golf shop merchandise and $536,800 in capital outlay to finish the conference center and purchase items such as golf simulators, kitchen equipment, furniture, landscaping and others. The Mozingo fund estimates a revenue of $1,361,000 from camping, boat and shelter fees along with the golf course, pro shop and golf cart rental incomes.

The general fund includes $1,518,044 for operating expenses for the Maryville Public Safety police department as well as $223,000 for the fire department. It also allots $30,000 for travel and training for city administration personnel.

The transient guest tax fund has a total revenue of $294,370. The expenses are broken down as follows: $100,308 contractual services, $28,608 commodities and $15,454 contingencies. This results in $144,370 in total operating expenditures, with $150,000 going to debt service to fulfill the payment agreement with Northwest Missouri State University for the multipurpose facility.

It is estimated that the city will receive $200,000 in revenue from court fines, $43,000 in cigarette taxes and $322,000 from state gasoline taxes.

Regarding community funding requests, the budget awarded $10,500 to the Maryville Public Art Committee, $62,000 to Nodaway County Economic Development, $60,000 to the New Nodaway Humane Society, $1,000 to Leadership Maryville, $1,500 to the Maryville Chamber of Commerce, $1,000 to Downtown Maryville, $600 to the Maryville Farmers Market, among others.

The budget will reflect the addition of a full-time events coordinator, a full-time Mozingo Lake Recreation Park Conference Center maintenance worker and two regular part-time employees to assist with conference center events. It also includes additional part-time cleaning and bartending staff for the conference center.

Staff plans to decrease the Mozingo Lake Recreation fund, leaving 20 percent of reserves in the general fund and leaving 50 percent reserves in the water/sewer fund.