Bismarck Parks to review $18.8 million budget Thursday
By Leann Eckroth, The Bismarck Tribune, N.D. | |
McClatchy-Tribune Information Services |
The Bismarck Park Board will consider spending nearly
Because of a 12 percent state Legislative tax credit , the owner of a
Projects
Bina said it should be done in time for opening by
Bina hopes that the upgrades to
Bina said the
"With a number of these projects, the park district has been able to leverage park district dollars for grant funds and park district donations to pay for these," Bina said.
The park district also will be adding another 1.19 miles to its Edgewood trail system for
Discussion continues about adding a new rink to the
Salaries
Bina said full-time employees can expect to see a 4.5 percent merit pay increase in 2015. Plus, the budget will allow for market adjustments for full and part-time workers to keep the park district competitive in wages. About 44 percent of the budget goes to payroll, he said. "It's a big part of our operation," Bina said. "It's a very competitive job market now. I'm not sure where the competition is coming from. It could be a combination of private and public sector. We've been challenged to fill all of our full-time and part-time positions." No changes are planned for the park district's benefit package. Employees also have their full health insurance premium costs paid for by the park district.
The park district also will add one full-time position in the 2015 budget -- a park operations employee to be paid about
Debt
Bina said at the end of 2014, the park district's debt will be about
Part of the debt includes the park district's recent purchase of the
The park district will repay the loan on the aquatics center for the next 20 years at a rate of about
Special events
Bina added that budget includes some special events for 2015.
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