On the Right Track

   I had heard the other day that I had inherited a big fund balance and that I had nothing really to do with Isanti's tremendous fiscal stability ... I was elected Mayor in 2006 and took office in 2007. As you can see the city was burning through money during the boom times ... the previous Mayor & Council had run up huge debts & increased the City budget by 40% in 2006 which I fought against and was the main reason I ran for Mayor... as the Great Recession took hold we were actually adding to our fund balance which is our cash on hand as compared to our spending. We did this by cutting spending, my LGA Flip, efficient operations, economic development, enforcing collection of debts, enforcing ordinances, following our Comprehensive Plan/Housing Plan and cutting taxes ... this was part of my overall Long Term Financial Plan that previous Councils have repeatedly adopted to weather the loss of revenue due to property values plummeting. We will be drawing this cash reserve down over the next few years so we do not cut services or raise taxes. We saved money for these tough rainy days ... We need to also ensure that we maintain our City Staff team. Our team is highly efficient, credentialed and professional. Other communities have tried to higher our staff away but they are committed to our future success. Facts are stubborn things. We have a good plan in place and we must continue to follow it to ensure our future success ... wishing things to be do not make them so ... hard work and discipline do ... Here are some Fiscal Facts

 

 

Year               Fund Bal

2004        67%

2005        53%

2006        51%

2007        58%

2008        65%

2009         80%

2010         93%

2011         91%

2012         83%

2013          80%

 

 

Peer Group of Cities Administration cost are 36% higher than Isanti, Park & Rec cost are 60% higher and Isanti's Net Debt has dropped from a high of over $2,500 per resident before I was elected Mayor to $630 per resident which is 60% less than our per group of cities. We improved our City's credit rating, won Economic Development New Business Recruitment Award, developed capital replacement plan, Long Term Financial Plan, increased Police Force and on and on ... We are running a very lean City while increasing our City services and options. Doing all this while paying off the staggering debt left to us from the previous Administration during the Great Recession. Lets keep working together for our future success. Our future keeps getting brighter so long as we stay on the right track