Budget ‘surplus’ should not mean extra spending
To the editor:
Recently, news broke that the City of Cape Coral currently faces a $1.6 million surplus above what the budget originally was planned for due to property values.
While there may be a few that will urge this council to spend it, I think it is important to reflect on the plan we have already set in place.
With the leadership of our current city manager, he has brought to our city a three-year rolling budget. There is no reason for our city to detour drastically off the plan. We have been able to return tax dollars to our citizens through infrastructure projects like street lights, road paving as well as reevaluating our Land Use Development Regulations and our Parks Master Plan.
I would urge my fellow citizens and council members to continue with the proposed 2017 budget and give back any surplus funds to the citizens.
Hopefully, in the upcoming months as we continue to mange the budget, further communication between the council members and the citizens can lead to a successful outcome for the residents.
Richard Leon
Cape Coral City Council District 4