ROANOKE, Va. (AP) - The city of Roanoke has put in place a hiring freeze and budget cuts to help it deal with the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
The decision was made during a virtual meeting by the Roanoke City Council on Monday, the Roanoke Times reported. The $298 million budget, which will take effect on July 1, calls for a reduction in library hours, closes the city’s swimming pools for two summers and spends less money on tourism and the arts.
The council also agreed to set aside $1.75 million as a contingency fund in case the virus outbreak continues to have lingering impacts on the city’s economy. Overall, the total spending cuts will be nearly $3.2 million year to year.
Infrastructure projects, including the development of a new bus terminal in the city, will not be sidelined by the budget cuts.
The city’s local tax revenue is expected to decline by nearly $5.7 million in the next fiscal year due to the coronavirus outbreak. While Roanoke City Public Schools will see less money coming in from the city because of the decline, Roanoke City Councilman Bill Bestpitch said the city will keep its agreement to provide 40% of their adjusted local tax revenue to the schools.
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