During a six-hour public workshop last Thursday, May 27, the Signal Hill City Council discussed the City’s proposed 2021-2022 fiscal-year budget. It will consider approving the budget on June 22, prior to the new fiscal year beginning on July 1.
Finance Director Sharon del Rosario said the budget projects a positive balance of $1.4 million at the end of the next fiscal year, with $27.5 million in revenue and $26.1 million in expenses.
Sales taxes—which account for 73% of Signal Hill’s budgeted revenue—have been higher than expected because the city’s businesses have proven to be pandemic resilient, del Rosario said.
Though COVID-19 health mandates caused businesses to close last year and the City to furlough staff and delay new hiring, the budget anticipates a full economic recovery, though some sectors may take longer than others, del Rosario said.
Auto sales are projected to grow as the economy reopens, as are fuel and service stations, del Rosario said. However, tax revenue from restaurants and hotels is projected to increase more slowly.
Further adding to Signal Hill’s revenue is a higher share of Los Angeles County sales-tax revenue due to retail purchases shifting more online since the pandemic, she said.
The City also instituted a .75-cent higher sales-tax rate as of April through Measure SHR, known as Measure R when Signal Hill residents voted to approve it in November 2020.
“Without the passage of Measure SHR, the City would have been faced with the difficult decision of making significant cuts to services,” City Manager Hannah Shin-Heydorn said.
The additional tax provides a locally-controlled income stream to fund community-directed services such as the maintenance of streets, sidewalks, storm drains and park facilities, Shin-Heydorn said.
Funds for emergencies, street improvements and water infrastructure
Measure SHR funds will also help prepare the city for natural disasters and health emergencies, maintain 911 emergency response times, address homelessness and provide crime prevention and investigation services, she said.
Specific Measure SHR projects in the 2021-2022 budget include widening the street corner at California Avenue and 27th Street, “cleaning up” the Cherry Avenue/Willow Street corridor, enhancing City Hall security and repairing streets and sidewalks, according to Shin-Heydorn.
She said banners and signage will be posted where Measure SHR helped.
Signal Hill will also receive about $2.2 million from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) approved in March, del Rosario said, noting that the federal government’s $350 billion allocation to state and local governments is to help ensure a strong and equitable economic recovery.
The City will use the bulk of ARPA funds—which represent a “once-in-a-lifetime” opportunity, according to del Rosario—to replace a 2,800-foot water main along 33rd Street. The 60-year-old main has required seven emergency repairs since 2017.
Councilmember Tina Hansen said spending the funds on water infrastructure allows residents to get better water quality without having to pay for the cost of repairs through higher water fees.
“Water does benefit everybody in the city—every household, every business, the schools, everything,” Hansen said.
Public Works Director Kelli Tunnicliff assured the public that no one will be without water during the year-long project, which will happen in phases.
The City will also use $66,000 in ARPA funds to continue its biweekly food-distribution program through June 30, 2022 and $50,000 to support the recovery of Signal Hill small businesses.
Police department expenses to rise
The Signal Hill Police Department (SHPD)—with 49 full-time employees and three part-time—represents 41% of the City’s $22-million expense budget, its largest expense.
Police Chief Christopher Nunley said his department will start hiring positions it had to freeze last year and also increase salaries and benefits for existing employees.
The department focuses on crime prevention, community outreach, emergency and disaster services, investigations services, and safety and traffic patrol, he said.
The department also trains officers in ethics, mental-health services and homeless outreach.
During the 2021-2022 fiscal year, SHPD employees will also be trained in how to deescalate use-of-force incidents and learn about implicit bias in procedural justice.
SHPD will also focus on more inclusive policing and outreach and engage the community and businesses more, such as by increasing foot and bike patrols.
The department was instrumental in securing personal protective equipment after the pandemic hit last year, Nunley said. He also said the department received over 3,900 calls for extra patrols last year compared to 400 to 500 during a typical year.
Other municipal projects budgeted in 2021-2022
Community Development Director Colleen Doan said this coming fiscal year will see construction continuing for a new Summerland housing development at 1375 E. 23rd St. and a new Tesla auto dealership at 1800 E. Spring St.
Her department already finalized plans in the 2020-2021 fiscal year for a new Gateway Center North that includes a Target store renovation at 950 E. 33rd St. with new retail space, drive-thru restaurant and self-storage at 3177 California Ave.
The City has also completed about 80% of the 169 new housing units that are required by the State by the end of 2021, she said, adding that the State’s next housing-development cycle will require Signal Hill to build 517 new units over the next eight years.
Tunnicliff said most of the Public Works Department’s $7.7 million capital-improvement project (CIP) budget will go to street repair, maintaining city facilities and other infrastructure improvement.
This summer, the department will also begin construction of View Park on Cherry Avenue and Burnett Street, expected to be completed early in 2022, Tunnicliff said. It will also start expanding Signal Hill Park at 1750 E. Hill St. by first demolishing two houses on 21st Street by the end of September.
The next Signal Hill City Council meeting will take place June 8 at 7 p.m. via teleconference.
