LFP City Council to Consider New Public Works Position, Utility Tax Increase and 2027-28 Budget

The Lake Forest Park City Council will take up several financial and staffing proposals during a special meeting Thursday, November 5, including a request for another Public Works project manager, changes to the city’s financial reserve policies, creation of a Strategic Prospect Fund, and a possible increase in sewer and stormwater utility taxes. The meeting begins at 7 p.m. at City Hall, 17425 Ballinger Way NE, with a Zoom option.

Proposed Public Works project manager

Mayor Tom French is asking the Council to consider adding a full-time project manager to the Public Works Department, specifically to advance multimodal transportation projects. The administration says the department doesn’t have enough staff capacity to move several Council transportation priorities forward while also managing existing capital projects and routine engineering responsibilities. The proposed position would manage consultants and contractors rather than perform engineering design itself. The initial goal would be to move additional transportation projects to approximately 10% design, allowing the city to pursue grants and other funding for full design and eventual construction. The city would fund the position through its Traffic Safety Fund, which receives revenue from traffic safety cameras, with certain exceptions. The top of the proposed 2027 salary range is $130,706.64 annually, plus approximately $58,000 in benefits. If approved, the administration plans to advertise the position during the first quarter of 2027. Public Works currently has 14 full-time employees.

Changes to financial reserve policies

Council will consider Resolution 26-2106, which would amend the city’s Comprehensive Financial Management Policies. One significant change involves how the city calculates its required financial reserves. The existing General Fund reserve policy bases the target on 16% of current-year revenues. Because city expenditures are currently exceeding revenues, the administration says using revenue alone is no longer practical. The proposed change would calculate the reserve target using current-year revenues or expenditures, whichever is greater. Since expenditures currently exceed revenues, this change would result in a larger required reserve target. The policy revisions also update references to city funds created since the last comprehensive policy update in February 2020 and make other changes to reflect current city practices and fund structure. The proposed policy establishes reserve targets for operating funds generally at 30 days of operating expenses or 8% of estimated current-year revenues or expenditures, whichever is greater. The General Fund, Street Fund, Sewer Fund, and Surface Water Utility Fund have higher targets of 60 days of operating expenses or 16%, whichever is greater. Staff is recommending approval of the amended financial policies.

New Strategic Opportunity Fund

Council will also consider Ordinance 26-1323, which would establish a new Strategic Opportunity Fund, designated as Fund 106. The proposed fund would be a reserve account within the General Fund intended to hold money for strategic, time-sensitive, or unusual municipal opportunities. Potential uses include real estate acquisitions, capital projects, planning and feasibility studies, grant-matching contributions, and other strategic projects. The fund could receive money from General Fund transfers, interfund loans, capital contributions, and state or federal grants. Interest earned would remain in the fund. Importantly, creating the fund would not generate new city revenue. Any expenditures or transfers from it would still require City Council authorization, either as part of budget adoption or through separate Council action. Staff recommends adopting the ordinance.

Possible increase in sewer and stormwater utility tax

Another proposal could increase the city’s utility tax on sewer, stormwater and surface water services. The current tax is 10%. Draft Ordinance 26-1325 asks the Council to consider increasing it to a rate between 11% and 16%, although Councilmembers could select a different rate or retain the existing 10%. The tax is applied to gross income from these services and is charged to customers. The proposed effective date is January 1, 2027. The draft retains the existing 50% low-income discount for sanitary sewer and stormwater customers, authorized by a 2024 Council resolution. The amount of additional revenue would depend on the tax rate ultimately selected, taxable utility revenues, and applicable discounts. The Council is being asked to provide direction on a proposed rate. Staff would return with a revised ordinance at a future meeting.

2027-28 budget deliberations

The final discussion item is the proposed 2027-2028 biennial budget. Councilmembers are scheduled to deliberate and recommend changes to the preliminary budget. The agenda packet does not include the full budget deliberation materials, so the meeting materials do not detail the specific amendments or recommendations for discussion.

How to participate

The special meeting is scheduled for Thursday, November 5, at 7 p.m. at Lake Forest Park City Hall, 17425 Ballinger Way NE. Residents may attend through Zoom: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/86867692707
Telephone: 253-215-8782
Webinar ID: 868 6769 2707. Oral public comments are limited to three minutes per speaker and are accepted only in person. The City is not accepting oral comments through Zoom. Written comments received by 5 p.m. on November 5 will be submitted to the Council for the meeting. Comments received after that deadline will be provided to Council the following day. The City Clerk will read the sender’s name and the subject of the comment into the meeting record. The meeting will be recorded. Because this is a special meeting, Council action is limited to items listed on the agenda. The next regular City Council meeting is scheduled for Thursday, November 12, at 7 p.m., preceded by a 6 p.m. work session. Both meetings will be held in a hybrid format at City Hall and by Zoom.

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