Fresno Mayor Ashley Swearengin has unveiled her 1.2 Billion dollar budget for the 2016 fiscal year.
“We all know that service levels were stressed, stretched to the brink in some levels, but we made it through.” – Mayor Ashley Swearingen.
City Manager Bruce Rudd says at one point Fresno was on the short list of cities on the brink to fail – Stockton, San Bernardino, and Detroit,
The proposed 2016 budget is a return to financial stability, after the city dodged a bullet from the recession over the past 6 years.
The mayor is focusing on infrastructure – revitalization of neighborhoods and parks and expansion in the Southwest, Southeast, and Central areas.
Parks, trails, and neighborhoods will see more funding.
Job creation and public safety are high priority.
Fresno’s Police Department will add 43 officers, and 15 police cadets will be maintained, bringing the total sworn officers to 775.
Next year, the Mayor’s plan will include hiring 3 more firefighters and adding a new fire company to Station 9 at Clinton and Fruit.
With 288 million in the general fund, and more money in the reserves – 15 million projected by end of 2016, the Mayor says Fresno is no longer drowning in debt, but has its head above water albeit dripping wet, standing at the shore.
