As the Gettysburg Borough Council closed its second budget workshop on Monday evening, they realized the actual deficit for 2025 is about $500,000.
“The deficit is the deficit,” Council President Matthew Moon said after the governing body spent more than four hours over the past two weeks discussing possible revenue sources and spending reductions.
The council will reconvene on Nov. 4 to discuss how to close the gap.
Scenarios
As of Monday evening, Moon predicted three possible ways to balance the 2025 budget – use American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds and avoid a tax increase, or use some ARPA funds this year and raise taxes about 0.4 mills.
The borough has $716,000 remaining in its ARPA account, Borough Manager Charles Gable said earlier this month. That money must be allocated by Dec. 31, 2026.
If the borough uses ARPA funds to completely balance the 2025 budget, Moon surmised, it would set the council up for an unavoidable 0.6 mill tax increase in 2026 and 0.7 or 0.8 mill increase in 2027.
Using $350,000 of ARPA money to balance the budget this year and $350,000 next year allows the borough to increase taxes 0.4 mills each year, barring any unexpected expenses.
Those options, and possibly others, will be discussed when the council meets at 7 p.m., Nov. 4. The council is scheduled to advertise its budget Nov. 12 and adopt it Dec. 9.
Parking rate hike possible
The $500,000 budget deficit the council is facing is about half of what it was when borough management first presented its 2025 budget proposal. Council used several methods to close the gap, including a proposed increase to some parking meters.
Acting on a suggestion from Councilman Chris Berger, Gable estimated the council could raise an additional $191,000 if it raised meters that currently cost $1 per hour to $1.50 per hour. Parking rates were last increased in 2018, Moon said.
“Meter fees are the only way visitors directly support the government’s budget,” he added.
Residents can purchase Local Privilege Parking permits for $35 a month, Gable said. No increase was proposed for those permits.
Council supported the proposal. Councilman Chad-Alan Carr suggested the borough increase $1 per hour street meters to $2 per hour and keep parking lots on Middle Street at $1.50 per hour. That plan, Gable calculated, would raise $340,000. Mayor Rita Frealing expressed support for the proposal.
However, Parking Manager Becka Fissel said Carr’s scenario is impossible since the borough’s obsolete parking meter calibration software limits its possibilities. Fissel said the borough would need to buy all new meters or transfer to a kiosk-only system to enact additional varying rates.
Gable said the borough attempted to replace the parking meters several years ago but faced strong public backlash. The current calibration system was created in the 1990s and cannot be updated.
“That is disgusting,” Carr said. “We are being capped and being cut off at the kneecaps.”
Police Spending
Police Chief Robert Glenny delivered the most impassioned proposal of the evening when he discussed his 2025 budget proposal.
Two years ago, the borough council increased the police department to 14 full-time officers. The department has been unable to fill those positions, but Glenny does not want them to disappear.
“My job, above all else, is to keep our community safe,” he said. “I have done what I do the lion’s share of my adult life.”
Since being named chief in 2019, Glenny has stressed his belief in The Peeling Principles of Policing, a set of guidelines for police departments that emphasize preventing crime and gaining public support.
“We are supposed to be a deterrent to crime and disorder; we are not supposed to be an occupying force,” Glenny said. “The smaller we get, that’s what we end up being because it becomes so reactionary.”
Glenny said he would like to begin initiatives such as Shop with a Cop, truck enforcement, foot patrols, child seat safety checks, and additional training. He believes a more present police force will help Gettysburg’s tourism industry.
“If people don’t feel safe, they aren’t going to come here,” he said.
Glenny also asked the borough to add a master sergeant position, which he has done so unsuccessfully for the past several years. During the meeting, he withdrew the request.
Last week, Councilwoman Patti Lawson suggested cutting the force by one officer to fund a new position that will be shared by the Public Works and Parking departments. That proposal was nixed, and most of the council reiterated their support for 14 officers on Monday, with Lawson maintaining her stance.
Featured image caption: Gettysburg Borough Police Chief Robert Glenny, right, discusses his 2025 budget proposal. Also pictured are Councilman Chad-Alan Carr, left, and Mayor Rita Frealing.
Alex J. Hayes has spent almost two decades in the Adams County news business. He is passionate about sharing stories focused on the people in our communities and following local governments in an age when few journalists report on their meetings. Alex is also a freelance writer for several other publications in South Central Pennsylvania. Alex encourages readers to contact him at ahayes83@gmail.com.
No one is talking about cutting anything from the budget or looking at expenses. All they are doing is trying to raise money and will just keep raising taxes. Why are we not offering any proposals about being more efficient and cutting waste? The parking meters are a prime example….do not replace but they are inefficient. We need to run the Borough like a business since it is.