Scottville to end budget year with revenue surplus.

By Rob Alway. Editor-in-Chief.

SCOTTVILLE — City Commission is being requested to approve budget amendements during its regular meeting Monday afternoon. The city’s 2014-2015 fiscal budget, which ends June 30, will actually have a $10,000 surplus, even though the city faced increased expenditures this past year.

City Manager Amy Williams said the majority of the increases came from the cemetery, police and recreation departments.

The police department’s two fulltime officers accumulated over 600 hours in sick time during the last year. Much of that came from a serious life-threatening medical condition Sgt. Jason Williams just faced.

“When they were out on sick leave we used part-timers to fill in so we didn’t have a gap in coverage and that made us go over in wages,” Amy Williams said, adding that the city’s health insurance has increased due to an employee changing coverage.

Williams said more burials took place last year than normal, which meant more expenses for the cemetery fund. She said the recreation department has also seen an increase in expenses because of building and grounds maintenance.

Scottville Riverside Park, which is self funded, also had increases in expenses due to cable television service fee increases and a restroom upgrade project.

“On the revenue side, we increased due to the taxes collected for the money we received from DNP (the mushroom plant’s former owner).” DNP had owed the city three years’ worth of taxes.

Other factors that contributed to the surplus included a milder winter, an increase in state money for maintaining State Street (U.S. 10) and an increase in funds from refuse.

City commission meets at 5:30 p.m. at city hall, 105 N. Main St.