At the most recent Kenai City Council meeting on Wednesday June 21st, the council increased the estimated revenues and appropriations in the General Fund for the Parks and Recreation utilities budget by $20,000.
Over the last year, the monthly Parks and Recreation utility bills have increased significantly.
The main reason is increased power usage at the Multi-Purpose Facility (MPF).
However, there have been many issues with the compressors this year, and wear and tear on the equipment has continued to be significant over the last several years with the use of summer ice. No longer providing summer ice and performing regularly scheduled maintenance on the compressor should help keep costs down for future years.
There has not been a significant change in utility costs for several years. However, in FY23, there has been a 20-30 percent increase in utility costs at the MPF.
The Recreation Utilities budget will require an estimated 18% additional funding by the end of FY2023. Internally the Parks Department can transfer funds to cover half of the increase in cost.
However, the funds will still be an estimated 9% over budget.
Considering these budget issue, the Kenai City Council increased the estimated revenues and appropriations in the General Fund to provide supplemental funding for the Parks and Recreation utilities budget in the amount of $20,000.