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08 February 2009
$35M Stimulus Plan
Feb/10/09 05:56 AM Filed in:
Construction
Hopefully there will be more of this
to come! - Tom
Council OKs $35M stimulus plan Nearly 300 new jobs would be created in Flagstaff, largely by accelerated flood control construction and street overlays.
By JOE FERGUSON
Sun Staff Reporter
Monday, February 09, 2009
The city of Flagstaff isn't waiting for the billions of dollars headed to Arizona as part of the federal stimulus package.
The Flagstaff City Council has green-lighted a plan formulated by City Manager Kevin Burke to inject nearly $35 million into the local economy.
The local stimulus package includes accelerating Rio de Flag flood control construction and a major streets maintenance program, injecting an additional $250,000 into new tourism marketing, handing out tax and rebate incentives for energy-efficient home upgrades and offering a tax holiday for the purchase of fuel-efficient vehicles at local dealerships.
To finance the stimulus program, the city is relying on three funding sources: federal funding, reprioritizing funds in the city's capital program and bonding for some programs. These are funds that cannot be used to cover the city's $13 million operating budget shortfall next year.
If all programs are funded, Burke estimates the local stimulus program would generate 290 new jobs, $13 million in wages, $2 million in additional tourism spending and $5.3 million in community spending.
The largest portion of the stimulus program would be in the injection of $23 million in mostly federal funds to complete the Rio De Flag flood control program. The city is currently seeking roughly $8 million from Congress to jump-start the open channel portion of the Rio project near downtown to start later this year.
The impact of the program is expected to give a much-needed boost to the city's construction industry, which is down by 25 percent, based on city sales tax revenues.
Federal funds would also pay for 500 home weatherization kits and rebates for the purchase of energy- efficient appliances.
The city would pour roughly $10 million into a street overlay project, which would address identified deficiencies in local roads. The city would also jump-start plans for a $1.9 million improvement along Industrial Drive and a $600,000 upgrade of the West and Sixth Street intersection.
In order to pay for the overlay project, the city would delay planned future projects identified in the city's five-year capital plans.
Burke did not identify any special project that would be indefinitely delayed by the stimulus plan.
City officials believe local contractors would benefit from the start of the flood control project. City codes do not allow for a local preference for the developer chosen for the project, but officials can require that a certain percent of subcontractors be local.
The city would also inject up to $250,000 into new tourism marketing, which Burke says will generate $8.22 for every dollar spent.
One suggestion by Burke, helping to finance the construction of 16 homes in the city land trust at a cost of $2.4 million, was rejected by the Council.
Several openly worried that building homes in the current market would be unwise.
The council also amended a suggestion by Burke to offer a waiver of the local sales tax on the sales of hybrid fuel vehicles. The waiver has been extended to high-efficiency vehicles instead, allowing the stimulus to be extended to all local car dealers - not just those that have hybrid vehicles.
Burke said the goal of the stimulus plan would be to curb the rising local jobless rate.
Non-seasonally adjusted unemployment figures for December topped 6.4 percent for the Flagstaff metropolitan statistical area, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. A year ago, the unemployment rate was 4.6 percent.
The city has dramatic drops in specific sectors, said Burke. He cited several figures through last November.
-- Construction is down 25 percent
-- Auto sales are down 37 percent
-- Sales at Big Box stores are down 6.5 percent
Figures for December have not been released to the public, but Burke has reviewed preliminary figures for the holiday month.
"It is just as bad as November's," Burke said.
But not all sectors are performing poorly. Revenue from the city's bed, board and beverage tax was down by only 1 percent from last year's figures.
Joe Ferguson can be reached at jferguson@azdailysun.com.
Council OKs $35M stimulus plan Nearly 300 new jobs would be created in Flagstaff, largely by accelerated flood control construction and street overlays.
By JOE FERGUSON
Sun Staff Reporter
Monday, February 09, 2009
The city of Flagstaff isn't waiting for the billions of dollars headed to Arizona as part of the federal stimulus package.
The Flagstaff City Council has green-lighted a plan formulated by City Manager Kevin Burke to inject nearly $35 million into the local economy.
The local stimulus package includes accelerating Rio de Flag flood control construction and a major streets maintenance program, injecting an additional $250,000 into new tourism marketing, handing out tax and rebate incentives for energy-efficient home upgrades and offering a tax holiday for the purchase of fuel-efficient vehicles at local dealerships.
To finance the stimulus program, the city is relying on three funding sources: federal funding, reprioritizing funds in the city's capital program and bonding for some programs. These are funds that cannot be used to cover the city's $13 million operating budget shortfall next year.
If all programs are funded, Burke estimates the local stimulus program would generate 290 new jobs, $13 million in wages, $2 million in additional tourism spending and $5.3 million in community spending.
The largest portion of the stimulus program would be in the injection of $23 million in mostly federal funds to complete the Rio De Flag flood control program. The city is currently seeking roughly $8 million from Congress to jump-start the open channel portion of the Rio project near downtown to start later this year.
The impact of the program is expected to give a much-needed boost to the city's construction industry, which is down by 25 percent, based on city sales tax revenues.
Federal funds would also pay for 500 home weatherization kits and rebates for the purchase of energy- efficient appliances.
The city would pour roughly $10 million into a street overlay project, which would address identified deficiencies in local roads. The city would also jump-start plans for a $1.9 million improvement along Industrial Drive and a $600,000 upgrade of the West and Sixth Street intersection.
In order to pay for the overlay project, the city would delay planned future projects identified in the city's five-year capital plans.
Burke did not identify any special project that would be indefinitely delayed by the stimulus plan.
City officials believe local contractors would benefit from the start of the flood control project. City codes do not allow for a local preference for the developer chosen for the project, but officials can require that a certain percent of subcontractors be local.
The city would also inject up to $250,000 into new tourism marketing, which Burke says will generate $8.22 for every dollar spent.
One suggestion by Burke, helping to finance the construction of 16 homes in the city land trust at a cost of $2.4 million, was rejected by the Council.
Several openly worried that building homes in the current market would be unwise.
The council also amended a suggestion by Burke to offer a waiver of the local sales tax on the sales of hybrid fuel vehicles. The waiver has been extended to high-efficiency vehicles instead, allowing the stimulus to be extended to all local car dealers - not just those that have hybrid vehicles.
Burke said the goal of the stimulus plan would be to curb the rising local jobless rate.
Non-seasonally adjusted unemployment figures for December topped 6.4 percent for the Flagstaff metropolitan statistical area, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. A year ago, the unemployment rate was 4.6 percent.
The city has dramatic drops in specific sectors, said Burke. He cited several figures through last November.
-- Construction is down 25 percent
-- Auto sales are down 37 percent
-- Sales at Big Box stores are down 6.5 percent
Figures for December have not been released to the public, but Burke has reviewed preliminary figures for the holiday month.
"It is just as bad as November's," Burke said.
But not all sectors are performing poorly. Revenue from the city's bed, board and beverage tax was down by only 1 percent from last year's figures.
Joe Ferguson can be reached at jferguson@azdailysun.com.