Lake County forest board weighing $71.9 million budget
Lake County Forest Preserve District officials plan to spend about $71.9 million during the next fiscal year, a significant drop from the current year's $95.1 million budget, new financial documents show.
The proposed budget for the 2017 fiscal year predicts an identical decrease in revenue.
Total expenses are dropping so dramatically primarily because officials expect to spend nearly $22 million less on capital projects, such as trail construction and facility improvements. The $185 million in loans voters approved in 2008 to fund such projects and land purchases is nearly gone, so the new budget doesn't include any new revenue from those bonds.
Forest district officials will publicly review the proposed budget Monday before voting later in the month. The new fiscal year begins July 1.
As usual, the biggest source of cash for the district in the next year will be property taxes, documents indicate. That income is expected to increase about 1.8 percent to more than $48.8 million. It'll be the district's first tax-levy increase since 2008.
But other revenue sources are shrinking.
For example, the planned temporary closure of the Lake County Discovery Museum near Wauconda will hurt revenues, officials said.
The museum is set to close Sept. 1 and relocate to the district headquarters in Libertyville, reopening in 2018. The resulting lost admission fees, merchandise sales and educational programs will amount to more than $50,000 annually, district finance director Stephen Neaman said.
Additionally, grants for capital projects will decrease in the 2017 fiscal year because fewer projects are planned, Neaman said.
District officials also are anxious about the funding they'll receive from the state, which still doesn't have a budget for the 2016 fiscal year. The forest district's budget anticipates state cuts.
"We've just got to be real cautious," said forest board member Steve Carlson, a Gurnee Republican who serves on the finance committee.
Projected expenses deliberately were reduced to match the declining revenue, officials said.
"Operating expenditures were reduced by over $700,000, and debt service is down over $400,000," Neaman said. "Reductions in operating expenses were made in most departments and covered many areas."
And then there's the capital budget, which has been reduced from about $35.9 million to less than $14 million.
The budget includes money for various projects, such as:
• The $3 million redevelopment of the Fort Sheridan Forest Preserve near Highland Park.
• The construction of a $1.5 million dog exercise area at the Waukegan Savannah near Wadsworth.
• Various trails and trail connections, totaling $520,000.
• Miscellaneous Habitat restorations, at a projected cost of about $1.7 million.
• Tree plantings, which could cost about $100,000.
Monday's budget discussion will occur during a special joint meeting of all the board's committees. It's set for 8:30 a.m. at the district's operations and public safety facility, 19808 W. Grand Avenue, Lindenhurst.
The full board is expected to vote on the budget May 10.