Buffalo Grove Reviews Balanced Budget, Prepares for Future Deficit

As Buffalo Grove officials praised the village’s proposed balanced 2014 budget, they were also warned that either spending reductions or a tax increase will be necessary to maintain it in the coming years.

Village staff members were able to eliminate a projected $1.6 million deficit next year through a series of efforts, including changes in fees and fines that are expected to bring in about $500,000 annually.

Efficiencies have also been achieved by shifting responsibilities as employees retire. The village is operating with the leanest staff it has had in more than a decade, Village Manager Dane Bragg said.

Overall, the village is expected to spend just over $63 million next year. About $37.5 million represents the general fund, which includes such services as police and fire protection. It includes funds to retain the police K-9 unit, which officials had discussed eliminating in a cost-cutting measure.

Village Trustees are expected to vote on the 2014 budget, along with a $14.6 million levy, on Dec. 2. The levy represents a 1.85 percent increase over the current amount. 

But while officials praised the staff’s work to balance the budget, Bragg cautioned that new revenue sources are needed to avoid raising property taxes in a few years. Without any changes, the village will be facing a deficit in 2017, he said.

“The bottom line is the village is going to have to be aggressive to attract retail growth,” Bragg said, noting that the future of the village’s three Dominick’s buildings are up in the air and the still-vacant car dealership sites on Dundee Road aren't producing sales tax.

He said the Village Board will have to discuss its “tolerance” for offering incentives to attract new development to Buffalo Grove.

“In short, we need revenue,” Bragg said. 

An economic development plan is among a list of village goals for 2014, said Deputy Village Manager Jenny Maltas.

The entire 2014 budget proposal can be viewed on the village's website.