SALT LAKE CITY — Sewer rate hikes that will double rates over the next five years.

A plan to preserve Rose Park Golf Course by absorbing it into the city's general fund.

Millions more for homelessness, affordable housing and roads.

Those are just a few highlights from Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie Biskupski's budget proposal unveiled Tuesday — leaving some council members with eyebrows raised but interested.

It's Biskupski's second budget proposal since she took office in 2016 — one she said was crafted with the same "fiscally responsible policies we started last year."

Those policies aim to avoid new debt service and reliance on one-time revenue sources, Biskupski said.

At the same time, the mayor said it's also time to ask residents to take on rate increases to help repair and replace water and sewer infrastructure that is "desperately needed."

Infrastructure

To replace the city's aging sewer treatment plan, Biskupski endorsed the public utility department's recommendation to increase sewer rates by 127 percent by 2021, which will bring the average household's monthly sewer bill from about $195 a year to $442 a year.

"This is a once-in-a-generation project," she said. "Our current plant is over 50 years old, and the expectation would be for the new plant to serve Salt Lake City for another 50 years."

The mayor pointed out that the city will still have lower sewer costs than many others in the valley, even after the increases.

"This ask must be coupled with a strong commitment from myself, the council and every city employee to be responsible stewards of the dollars residents place in our hands," she said. "And that we do all we can to ensure additional costs are reasonable and implemented gradually."

That's why, Biskupski said, she's proposing that the city hold off on any additional bonding for the city's Redevelopment Agency or for roads — or a tax increase to fund investment and renovations at various city library branches.

But that's not to say new bonds aren't on the horizon.

"After careful consideration and in consultation with our finance experts, I have determined the city will be in a much better financial position to consider a new general obligation bond next year, when existing bonds are scheduled to expire," Biskupski said.

However, the mayor has proposed to pump $1.9 million in capital improvement funding for "shovel-ready" projects, bringing the total funds allocated for roads, sidewalks and streets to more than $8 million this year.

Additionally, the mayor proposed a new way to address Salt Lake City's struggling golf fund — by moving the Rose Park Golf Course into the city's general fund, which would cost $400,000 in taxpayer dollars to subsidize.

That's despite City Council members' earlier warnings that they won't be supportive of any general fund money going toward golf courses.

"I understand this is a large shift," Biskupski said, "but this move helps stabilize the golf fund, and more importantly preserve a golf course the Rose Park community loves."

Homelessness and affordable housing

Amid perpetual public outcry over the drug- and crime-riddled troubles surrounding the Road Home downtown and an ever-worsening housing crisis, Biskupski proposed more than $5.5 million in initiatives to help homelessness and affordable housing.

Included in her proposal:

• $3 million in new Redevelopment Agency dollars to fund affordable housing initiatives, bringing funds from $21 million last year to $24 million.

• $2.1 million to assist agencies with service needs and mitigation efforts.

• $1.5 million in ongoing funding for needs previously paid for by one-time or emergency funding.

• $685,000 to continue Operation Diversion, a program Biskupski launched last month to separate criminals from those needing drug or mental illness treatment.

• $220,000 in new dollars for the city's Community Connection Center, staffed with social workers to help connect people to services.

• $125,000 to help the city's 20 highest users of city resources transition into housing.

• Funding for the Road Home, detox beds at Volunteers of America, winter motel vouchers, emergency winter shelter at St. Vincent de Paul Dining Hall, among other initiatives.

"Our willingness to continue exploring new ideas and to fund these initiatives will undoubtedly help solve some immediate concerns as we prepare for the closing of the downtown shelter in 2019," she said.

Council thoughts

City Council Chairman Stan Penfold was absent from Tuesday night's presentation, but Councilman Derek Kitchen said he looks forward to "digging deeper" into the budget proposal.

At first glance, however, Kitchen said two things gave him pause. First, Biskupski's reluctance to approve a bond for Redevelopment Agency projects.

"Have you driven down 11th East?" Kitchen said when asked if the bond can wait.

He noted that part of the bond the Redevelopment Agency is considering would help pay for street projects.

"Maybe she hasn't been fully informed on the complexity of finance from the city's point of view, but it makes perfect sense to do a bond right now while the market is strong," Kitchen said.

City Councilwoman Lisa Adams, also chairwoman of the Redevelopment Agency, agreed, noting that the city has about $34 million in street project needs.

"We think (a bond) will actually move the projects along more quickly rather than slowing things down," Adams said.

Secondly, the plan to absorb Rose Park Golf Course into the general fund left both Kitchen and Adams hesitant but curious to hear more.

Kitchen called it an "interesting thought," and one that might not have the support of the full council, which has "philosophical concerns" about the city subsidizing golf.

"Golf has been struggling in the city for a long time," he said. "I appreciate that the mayor is being creative about how to pencil golf this year. We all want to save golf. But the reality is we're faced with a pretty dire situation with declining users and years and years of deferred maintenance that have not been addressed as far as I can tell."

Even though in the past the council has warned the administration not to come to them for general fund money for golf courses, Kitchen said he's willing to hear more about the proposal.

"That's a conversation we'll need to have. We don't want to subsidize golf, just like we don't want to subsidize rock climbing or bowling. These are important issues, and of course, the community cares about it," he said. "But should the general fund, our public resources go toward it? That's a philosophical conversation I think the council's going to need to be clear on."

Adams, however, said she was "delighted" to see $3 million more for affordable housing — a priority the mayor and the council are "exactly aligned" on, she said.

As for Biskupski's hopes to hold off on a property tax increase to fund improvements for the city library, Adams said that's also something the council will have to study.

"The library has not seen an increase since 2004," she said. "That's a big deal."

Under state law, the City Council must approve a balanced budget by June 22.

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