Montrose, CO — The public will have an opportunity to receive information and provide feedback regarding the City of Montrose's 2024 budget at an open house planned for Tuesday, October 17, in the City Council Chambers located at 107 S. Cascade Avenue. The event will begin at 4:30 p.m. with an overview of the budget, followed by informal, one-on-one discussions with city officials who will take comments and provide additional information.
The city budgets on an annual basis for a fiscal year that begins January 1. The City Charter (Article V - Finance, Appropriations, and Taxation) outlines the basic procedure that is used to create, approve, and implement the annual budget.
The city manager is required to prepare a recommended annual budget for the upcoming fiscal year and provide it to the City Council in mid-October. The budget development process begins in early summer with each department preparing a preliminary budget estimate based on an analysis of its operational needs for the coming year. Departmental budget estimates are carefully reviewed and adjusted by the city manager and are then combined into a draft budget for the entire city organization. The draft budget is then provided to the City Council for review.
City of Montrose Finance Director Shani Wittenberg and City Manager Bill Bell, center, host a community discussion on the 2023 city budget during the 2022 City of Montrose budget open house held in the City Council chambers in October 2022. This year’s budget open house will be hosted on Tuesday, October 17, at 4:30 p.m. in the council chambers located at 107 S. Cascade Avenue.
Following the open house, the budget is reviewed and drafted into a city ordinance and placed before the City Council for a formal vote of adoption. As with any city ordinance, the council must vote on a first and second reading of the ordinance in a public hearing and take public comment. The public hearings and vote to approve the budget and appropriation ordinance are scheduled for Tuesday, November 7, and Tuesday, November 14.
Residents who are unable to attend the open house are encouraged to view the proposed budget at CityofMontrose.org/Budget. Following the open house on October 17, the website will include an electronic version of the proposed budget, a link to submit comments, documents related to past and current budgets, and more information about how the public can actively participate in the budget process.
Copies of the proposed budget are also available at City Hall (400 East Main Street) from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Thursday. All interested citizens are encouraged to accept the opportunity to give written and verbal comments.
For more city news visit CityofMontrose.org.