The Odessa City Council passed the city’s FY22-23 budget Tuesday night and approved increases to the city’s water, sewer and solid waste rates.
According to Cindy Muncy, assistant city manager of administrative services, the city’s projected revenues are expected to be about $252,989,524 with expenditures expected to come in at $255,271,002. She explained expenditures are slightly higher than revenues because the city’s got a longer list of equipment that needs to be replaced in the coming fiscal year. She said the difference “is not an issue.”
Muncy said she expects the city will raise 4.1% more in property taxes than this year or $1,949,671. Roughly 61% of that increase will come from new property, she said.
The council also approved a 6% increase in water/sewer rates and a 3.5% increase in solid waste rates.
Muncy told the council last week the increased water rate change will help cover the rising cost of equipment, debt service, repairs and replacement. The city normally increases the rates by 2.5%, but the additional 3.5% will pay half of the city’s new debt service payment for the upgrades to the water treatment plant.
A resident who uses 5,000 gallons of water will see their monthly bill increase $2.18, Muncy said. A customer who uses 5,000 gallons of water will see a $1.32 increase in their monthly sewer bill and that money will help cover the cost of sewer line replacements, she said.
Over the last couple of years, the city has increased solid waste rates by 2.5%, but this year the staff proposed a 3.5% increase because fuel and tipping fees have increased so much, Muncy said. The cost of the trucks themselves have also increased by 30%, she said.
A single family residence will experience a monthly increase of 75 cents, she said.
The council also declared Gilbert Vasquez and Greg Connell the winners of November’s city council election, since they were the only candidates to run for District 3 and District 4, respectively. They’ll take their seats following the actual election.
District 5 Council member Mari Willis, District 3 Council member Detra White and District 4 Council member Tom Sprawls announced a couple of months ago they wouldn’t be running for re-election in November. Interested parties had until Aug. 22 to turn in their applications to run for the open seats.
Chris Hanie and Shaye Lane will be running against each other for the District 5 position.
In other matters, the city also agreed that developers can now ask the city council for permission to create public improvement districts.
When a PID is approved, developers build city-owned small pocket parks in new neighborhoods, but the residents pay for their upkeep through property taxes.
The council also said goodbye to Assistant City Manager of Community Services Phillip Urrutia, who has taken a job in Garland.
Urrutia oversees several departments within the city, including parks and recreation, planning and zoning, public works and utilities.
All of the council members thanked Urrutia for his hard work, prompt responses and upbeat personality. They said he’d be missed and wished him luck in his new job.
“I was born in West Texas and will always consider myself a West Texan. I’ll always be an Odessa cheerleader and I’ll always be watching to see the good things that are going on. Thank you very much,” Urrutia said.
