A two-year operating and capital budget approved by the City Council June 19 increases funding for street repairs and paving that had been cut severely during the pandemic.
The final, approved budget reflects an Operating and Capital Budget of $39.8 million for 2023-24 and $40.7 million for 2024-25. The 2023-24 fiscal year begins July 1. The budget fully restores services and reestablishes programs that were previously placed on hold due to the pandemic.
One of them, the Annual Pavement Program, shrunk to 20 percent of normal during the pandemic, from about $500,000 to as little as $100,000.
The new pavement program budget sets aside $745,000 in 2023-24 and $700,000 in 2024-25 and includes funding to complete a City-wide assessment to identify and prioritize needs.
For fiscal 2023-24, which begins July 1, repairs and resurfacing are expected on Ocean View Avenue between Nob Avenue and Pine Needles Drive, Camino del Mar from 22nd Street to the Jimmy Durante Boulevard merge and as needed on bike lanes.
The approved budget includes transfers to various reserve funds and an equipment replacement fund and exceeds the City’s goal of maintaining a 25% contingency fund balance.
It also provides increased funding for programs the City Council has identified as priorities, including Housing Element implementation and the pursuit of affordable housing at the Del Mar Fairgrounds, the Utility Undergrounding Program, and establishment of regulations for short-term rentals.