Capital Improvement: In Need of Improvement

Cities, like businesses, need a source of revenue in order to continue to function. Services like street sweeping, park maintenance, and capital improvement are all products of the revenue produced by the city. Whereas the profits of businesses come from consumers and clients, the revenue of a city comes from its taxes. The tax dollars payed by the commercial and residential constituents of Greenwood Village fund both the operating budget of the city, as well as the capital improvement budget.

It was the capital improvement budget (CIB) that was the focus of Monday night’s meeting. The Council needed to decide which projects needed funding, and in order to do so, was provided some background information about the city’s finances. The outlook given to the council was grim. Given the council’s current capital commitments in combination with its planned capital projects, the CIB would run out of funds just a few years down the road. This news set the tone for the rest of the meeting, with all council members mindful of  Greenwood Village’s slow economic recovery. As discussion shifted to the installation of a new turf field for a local park, the council members carefully weighed the pros and cons of the pricey investment.

After the 2008 crash, economic recovery is slow, not just in the Village, but around the country. Commercial growth is still slow, despite the slight improvements in the market. With the majority of the funds for the CIB coming from commercial sales tax, the council must remember that the Village has a largely commercial based economy. It might be time for the council to drop some of the less important projects, in order to save the budget.