Revere mayor: City facing a million-dollar shortfall for FY ’09

REVERE – Mayor Thomas Ambrosino said he needs to identify $1 million in city spending cuts or find that amount of additional money before the next budget year starts on July 1.Short of turning to local property owners for additional taxes, the mayor’s answer to the shortfall is to leave city jobs vacated by retirements unfilled or look to the state for additional financial assistance.”Hopefully, I can recommend a budget to the City Council in mid-May without layoffs,” Ambrosino said Wednesday.He told councilors earlier this month that not replacing city workers who retire could “save money and avoid layoffs.” But he warned that approach potentially means leaving three Fire Department jobs, three or four police jobs and one or two Public Works department positions vacant.That plan effectively shelves Ambrosino and Police Chief Terence Reardon’s goal of hiring eight police officers for a total of 100 working for the department. Reardon said he is prepared to fall short of that goal.”It’s tough as always,” he said.Gov. Deval Patrick and the Massachusetts House of Representatives have proposed increasing the state’s current allocation to Revere from $13 million to $13.1 million, not including school assistance money.The city saw a $1.8 million surplus this year but two major city construction projects quickly claimed the money. Some of it will be spent assembling a site for the new Paul Revere School and the rest to pay off the repair bill for a collapsed culvert near American Legion Highway.The City Council voted last year to spend $1 million acquiring land for the new elementary school. Ambrosino said adding $815,000 from the surplus to that amount will provide enough money to allow the city to buy private lots and relocate their owners.Current city plans call for building Paul Revere in 2009, one year after construction of the Rumney Marsh Academy, now underway, and two years before construction is to start on a new McKinley School.Ambrosino wants to spend $400,000 in surplus money to help cover the $880,000 culvert repair cost. The remainder of the repair expense has already been paid by the city.The city’s fiscal health could improve in 2009 when three local development projects near completion and start generating additional property tax revenue for the city next year.The Channel retail project is under construction off Everett Street and Ambrosino said BJ’s Wholesale Club is pulling its building permits in the next week.He is confident the Ocean Club condominium project will obtain necessary city permits to build on Revere Beach Boulevard.”The general contractor says it’s a go,” Ambrosino said.