Budgeting and planting trees for Homewood

Dear friends and neighbors,

The end of the fiscal year is approaching, and meetings with department heads regarding the upcoming budget are now taking place. That sounds like fun, doesn’t it?

There are hundreds of line items ranging from electricity to dog food for our canines. The process has steadily progressed, and we have been tracking expenses and revenues over the last few years by line item.

I never move funds from one line item to another without Council approval for two reasons: one, it keeps all our finances above board to ensure everyone is informed, and two, it gives us an accurate reflection and history of that line item for year-end review.

When I present my proposed upcoming budget to the Council, I can then give them a three-year history on every single line item in the budget, which makes it easy for a council person or resident to understand why the proposed funding is being requested.

I take a great deal of pride in presenting the budget to my neighbors who serve on the Council and believe our budget addresses much more than funding. It represents character, honesty and the intended direction of the City.

The Council has always trusted my budgets, and we work very hard making sure we never give them a reason not to trust it.

Since becoming mayor in 2008, this city has ended every single year with a surplus, meaning our expenses have not exceeded our revenues.

By completing each year with a surplus, employees do not have to fear losing their jobs, capital projects continue, and it is proof to the residents they have a government that can (and will) work within the budget.

Homewood is fortunate to have so many boards and committees offering advice and assistance to the Mayor’s Office and City Council who share their  ideas during the budget process.

I’ll take this opportunity to thank the Environmental Commission for the work it has been doing. One of the most popular aspects of our City is our beautiful “heritage” trees. Unfortunately, those large trees that seem to separate our city from “cookie-cutter” neighborhoods are rapidly declining due to natural death, storm devastation or removal due to development.

So what can we do to address this? One way is to start a program that would replace our large trees over a period of time, which could ensure we have the opportunity to enjoy our canopy for years to come. The City has been guilty of replacing trees with crape myrtles and Japanese maples. And while they are beautiful accent trees adding color, they will not give us the desired outcome many years from now.

So, these decisions are also a part of the budget process and the positive discussions will continue. Our upcoming budget will address the things needed now and the things we will need for the future.

Leadership is the ability to recognize a problem before it becomes an emergency, so we will dig our well now — before becoming thirsty. With kindest regards I remain

Sincerely,

Scott McBrayer

Mayor