Bacon: "Government Is Being Good with Your Money"

During Thursday's State of the City address themed "Your City In Perspective", Smyrna Mayor Max Bacon said the City is in good financial standing, moving forward with development projects and working with Cobb County Government on improving the park system in the area.

Bacon spoke to nearly 200 people at the Smyrna Community Center that included members of the Smyrna Business Association and the Smyrna Area Council of the Cobb County Chamber of Commerce.

He reflected on the accomplishments Smyrna achieved over the years as a community, and shared details on the City's budget and ongoing development projects.

The Mayor called the budget a "solid and fiscally responsible" one, pointing out that this is Smyrna's 23rd consecutive year without a tax increase.

"It's a good sign the government is being good with your money," said Bacon.

Here are some highlights of the budget:

Budgeted funds      FY 2013        FY 2014        Decrease 

General Fund            38,536,854    37,837,078     (699,776)

Special Revenue        4,112,590      2,868,459      (1,244,131)

Capital Projects         9,859,440      9,359,153      (500,287)

Water/Sewer            21,904,784     18,676,630    (3,228,154)

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Total budget           74,413,668   68,741,320   (5,672,348)

Bond payments for FY 2014 are budgeted at $3,236,243, and the City currently holds five outstanding bonds that help fund acquisition of property, construction of public safety facilities and infrastructure improvements for parks.

Bacon said Smyrna is in good financial standing with Standard & Poor's AA+ and Moody's AA2 bond ratings.

The Mayor also gave an update on the City's Parks and Recreation Master Plan, which proposes a 10-year project with an estimated cost of $9.5 million or more.

If implemented, the project will focus on accommodating anticipated population growth by adding 38 acres of new park space to the existing 327 acres in Smyrna.

Bacon said the lack of resident participation is another big issue with Smyrna's Park and Recreation. Study shows that more than 45 percent of those who participate in city-related recreational activities such as sports leagues are non-residents.

The better solution to Smyrna's growing demand of park space could be more county parks or joint-used facilities that would allow the City of Smyrna to share costs with Cobb County Government, said Bacon.