CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (CLARKSVILLENOW) –  Mayor Joe Pitts and the City Council approved Thursday a Fiscal Year 2020 financial plan for the City of Clarksville that focuses on public safety, better roads and family recreation facilities.

Mayor Pitts’ first budget since taking office in January rolled through the Council’s evaluation and approval process, and the various budget ordinances each passed on a vote of 12-0. Ward 8 Councilman David Allen was absent.

Mayor Pitts added a step to this year’s budget deliberations by asking the City Council’s standing committees to review and discuss proposed departmental budgets. The Mayor, Council and department leaders credited the change as a major improvement that helped pave the way for a smooth budget process.

This is a reappraisal year, and the certified tax rate, which will yield a revenue-neutral amount after the new property values are calculated, has not yet been set by the State. While the approved budget calls for no property tax increase, the Council will have to return to the budget in a special-called meeting before month’s end to formally adopt the certified tax rate. The City’s 2020 Fiscal Year begins on July 1, 2019.

The total proposed budget for Fiscal 2020 is $523 million. This includes expenditures in the General Fund and all enterprise funds, including CDE Lightband, Clarksville Gas & Water, and Clarksville Transit System.

The proposed 2020 General Fund, or operating, budget is $103,132,672, which represents an increase in operating expenses of 7 percent over the 2019 General Fund total.

Major projects and programs in the FY 2020 budget include:

  • Support for the Clarksville Police Department with plans to purchase equipment for Clarksville Fire Rescue.
  • Work on several major road projects, including Whitfield Road, Rossview Road and the Northeast Connector.
  • Plans to improve existing parks and recreation assets and acquire a site for a new community recreation center in northeast Clarksville.

The budget calls for adding a total of 15 new positions, including seven police officers, four new maintenance workers for Parks & Recreation/Golf, three loss prevention/security specialists and one new Street Department worker.

 

A presentation of FY 2020 budget information, including the full budget document are online at https://tn-clarksville.civicplus.com/803/Fiscal-Year-2020-Budget.