Milford City Council Fiscal Year 2027 Budget Workshop - May 13, 2026

The Milford City Council held the first of three budget workshops for Fiscal Year 2027 on Wednesday, May 13, 2026. The workshop focused on reviewing departmental budgets, personnel requests, and operational forecasts driven by city growth. The public comment period yielded no participants.

Public Comments & Testimony

• The 15-minute public comment period was opened. No members of the public were present or signed up to speak. The period was promptly closed.

Discussion Items

• Budget Overview: City Manager Chris Coleman introduced the draft balanced budget, characterizing it as a "pie" facing growth pressures. Finance Director Lou Vitola explained the budget is a work in progress (Draft 1), with Draft 2 incorporating open enrollment changes and council feedback.
• Finance Department (Kevin Gaborio, Acting Finance Director; Lou Vitola): Requested one new full-time accounting FTE, representing an ~$137k increase in personnel costs (18%). Kevin argued the position is critical to complete timely audits, implement the Tyler ERP system, strengthen internal controls, and shift from reactive to proactive operations. Councilman Perez commended the department's efficiency. Councilwoman Calusias questioned the dichotomy of high software costs with requests for more staff, while Councilman Maravella supported the move towards proactive operations and robust internal controls. The position was discussed as overlapping temporarily with an existing temp contractor (costing ~$75k-$85k/year). Council requested clearer separation of existing staff cost increases versus new position costs.
• Customer Service (Kevin & Susanna): Requested a Senior Cash Ops Clerk. Over five years, customer accounts grew 12-13% while headcount remained static at 10. The position is needed to manage the growing volume of transactions, support the utility billing software implementation, and provide enhanced coverage for leave. Susanna noted the city will eventually save on assessment services once county tax data is fully integrated into the new software.
• Information Technology (Bill): Budget presented as relatively flat. Bill highlighted the city's low cybersecurity vulnerability. Council questioned high software maintenance costs. Bill explained the costs reflect running the legacy Navaline system in parallel with the new Tyler system, a temporary overlap expected to resolve as Tyler modules are implemented, eventually eliminating ~$150k in Navaline expenses.
• Police Department (Chief): Presented a request for staffing augmentation to address gaps between authorized strength (40 officers) and the daily operational needs driven by growth, homelessness, and seasonal traffic. The Chief emphasized the request is a structural restoration, not an expansion, funded in part by grants (approaching $1M). The General Municipal and Police Enhancement Fund (~$1M balance) was discussed, with a consensus that withdrawals require formal council approval.
• Electric Department (Tony Chipotle): Requested two part-time positions: a warehouse assistant and an engineering intern (totaling less than one FTE). The overall O&M budget is minus 0.8% excluding power supply. Councilwoman Nina Pletcher suggested a local food bank logistics program as a recruitment pool.
• Tech Services (Tony): Proposed a 6% O&M increase primarily to cover the rising and unpredictable rate of water meter failures across the growing service area.
• Public Works (Willis Schaffer): Requested a dedicated building maintenance staff member for the city's 100,000 sq. ft. of buildings. Willis argued the current practice of pulling staff from other divisions leads to expensive reactive repairs and suboptimal efficiency. Other flat budgets were presented for streets, water, sewer, solid waste, and the garage. Councilman Perez inquired about outsourcing possibilities.
• City Hall/Facilities (Lou Vitola): Presented a minor FTE increase allocated across funds related to the building maintenance request, representing the initial step toward formalizing a comprehensive facilities management fund.

Key Outcomes & Next Steps

• Items Deferred to Next Workshop: No formal votes were taken. All personnel requests, revenue and RTT slides, enhancement funds, and vehicle/equipment reserve discussions were deferred to the following workshop on May 14.
• Budget Revisions: A second draft of the FY27 budget will be published after the third workshop, incorporating open enrollment changes, council feedback, and adjustments to revenue projections.
• Council Directives: Council directed staff to provide detailed breakdowns separating salary increases for existing staff from the costs of proposed new positions to support informed decision-making.
• Policy Consensus: Council confirmed that any future draws from the General Municipal and Police Enhancement Fund must come before the full council for approval.