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REGULAR MEETING October 9, 2017
<br /> Councilmember Karen White, Chair of the Personnel and Finance Committee,reported that they
<br /> met this afternoon and send this bill forward with a favorable recommendation. Councilmember
<br /> White stated for the record that the Personnel and Finance Committee, as of October 16th, 2017,
<br /> will have had seventeen(17) budget hearings. Councilmember White thanked the Council, the
<br /> Administration, heads of department, the City Controller, and the public for attending budget
<br /> hearings and for their input.
<br /> Pete Buttigieg, Mayor of the City of South Bend, with offices on the 14th Floor of the County-
<br /> City Building, South Bend, IN, served as the presenter of this bill. Mayor Buttigieg stated, I just
<br /> want to echo Chairperson White's expression of appreciation for everybody who worked on this,
<br /> including the committee, the Council, and everybody on the City team,too. There's been a lot of
<br /> public input, a lot of discussion, and a lot of work, as always. It feels like each passing year we
<br /> get I would like to believe we're getting better and better at making sure that we really look at
<br /> the budget from all angles and structure a process that creates maximum opportunity for the
<br /> community to show interest and really have that exchange of priorities between what
<br /> Councilmembers are hearing through residents and what we in the Administration were
<br /> forwarded. I think this is the best year yet, looking to 2018. So, thank you.
<br /> Mayor Buttigieg continued, There's a real emphasis on neighborhoods in the 2018 budget, and
<br /> making sure that on one hand we're taking advantage of some opportunities that we haven't had
<br /> before, or opportunities that are coming to us in new ways. We got chances to look at Parks and
<br /> Recreation assets, transportation and safety, human services in ways that it's really, I think,
<br /> compelling to be able to look at it all. So, a number of challenges have surfaced.None of these
<br /> things are completely new,but many of them have an emergency. So, even though the City
<br /> doesn't always have the lead on things like public health, we've come to realize that the City's
<br /> got to play a role, and we've allocated the resources in this budget to help us do our part.
<br /> Building largely on the priority-based budget exercise that we've undertaken together, we've
<br /> identified these areas of focus that account for most of the work and the resources that are
<br /> reflected in the budget: neighborhoods; public safety; health and human services; business
<br /> development and inclusive growth; capital investments to keep our City with the resources that
<br /> we need; quality of place—which is helping fuel the human side of economic growth—; regional
<br /> economic growth and cooperation, which I think has been unlocked to a new level by
<br /> opportunities like the Regional Cities support that we're getting from the State; and making sure
<br /> that in the City workforce itself we're supporting an effective,motivated, and healthy and happy
<br /> city with this.
<br /> Mayor Buttigieg continued, I have the Council priorities in my packet. To reiterate what we
<br /> heard loud-and-clear from the Council during all the discussions that came up: a real emphasis
<br /> on quality-of-life and neighborhoods, including making sure that there was the strongest possible
<br /> residential development from Community Investment and that for the most economically
<br /> challenged and historically excluded districts in the City, we are getting the attention that they
<br /> deserve and require, making sure that we pay attention to the affordability of housing, here;
<br /> expanding lighting, knowing that the Light Up South Bend initiative has been well-received and
<br /> is deserving of extension; resources for Code Enforcement; talking about what comes next after
<br /> the 1,000 Houses in 1,000 Days vacant and abandoned properties, as well as priorities like
<br /> economic development,public safety, and traffic patrols; Parks and Recreation; infrastructure;
<br /> attention to city borders; and diversity in the workforce. And these, of course, are the six (6)
<br /> major categories that appeared in our priority-based budgeting process that we developed in
<br /> partnership with the Council.
<br /> Mayor Buttigieg continued, Some of the new things—and the things that will probably command
<br /> the most attention because they represent large investments of resources: one (1) is the My SB
<br /> Parks and Trails Plan,which is now underway. We've got groundbreakings like Charles Black,
<br /> Howard Park, and other sites around the City. We're going to want to mention that we're really
<br /> talking a third, a third, a third in terms of where the resources come from. About a third from
<br /> outside sources like the Regional Cities funding, the Kate and Dan contribution, and the
<br /> University of Notre Dame—amounting to $12,100,00; a TIF commitment that amounts to
<br /> $14,000,000 if you combine the bond with the cash that was put forward; and then the parks
<br /> bond at$13,800,000—collectively, it represents the biggest investment in Parks and Recreation
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