Yesterday, the Fayetteville City Council Members approved the budget for Fiscal Year 2023 after several weeks of deliberation and public hearings. 

The $249.17 million budget comes without a tax rate increase for Fayetteville residents. The budget will provide more than $6.8 million in pay increases for City staff to address recruitment and retention.

The budget continues the work of the City’s strategic plan from recent years to make Fayetteville a desirable place to live, work and play while adding funding to areas that will meet that goal. 

“Together, we have achieved unprecedented success in recent years, and this budget continues that work,” said Mayor Mitch Colvin. “I’m pleased through this budget we will advance important initiatives in housing affordability, public safety, public infrastructure, recreation and economic development, all without a tax increase for residents. The forward-looking FY23 budget celebrates all we have accomplished while ensuring our City is positioned for growth now and into the future.”

Highlights from the budget include:

• More than $6.6 million in employee pay increases
•   $2.7 million for fire vehicle and apparatus equipment and $1.6 million for police vehicle replacements
• $70,000 for neighborhood traffic calming measures and speed studies
• Funds an additional Plans Examiner position to assist with expedited plan review service
•  $4.7 million in annual pavement preservation funding
•  $4.5 million for stormwater watershed studies
•  $3.5 million for the design of projects resulting from the watershed studies
•  $450,000 for spot repairs, easement acquisition and project management
• $200,000 for dam safety, preservation and repairs
• $30,000 of local funding to begin a bus route to service the Amazon distribution center
• Funds operating costs for new amenities constructed using the Parks and Recreation Bonds
• $165,000 to provide a community New Year’s Eve celebration
• $145,000 for a celebration in honor of Juneteenth
• $100,000 to continue the partnership with Cumberland County to fund strategies to assist homeless citizens
• $1.4 million in technology improvements
• $15,000 to initiate a digital kiosk partnership program Downtown and at Fort Bragg

To learn more about the budget, visit here.