'Dire' Outlook: Elmhurst Official Pushes More Cuts

ELMHURST, IL – A key Elmhurst City Council panel is canceling a rare Friday meeting to discuss more budget cuts than the $3.6 million already proposed.

Rather, the debate is set to shift to Monday's meeting of the full council, which is facing a tough budget year.

The finance committee was to review another $921,000 in possible reductions.

The city released a list of the additional cuts as part of the committee's agenda packet.

In the document, the city says Alderman Jacob Hill requested that the items be reviewed. He is one of the panel's four members.

Hill, who represents northwest Ward 2, recommended against cutting $182,000 of the items and suggested another $164,000 were worthy of discussion. He rated the remaining $575,000 of items as between the other categories.

Hill said the idea was to look at more cuts to offset a likely increase in the property tax levy.

"The document is a starting point," Hill said in an interview Thursday. "It's not necessarily my opinion about the value of the items."

He said the city needs more cuts going forward.

"Our five-year forecast looks dire," he said.

One of the possible cuts is $90,000 for the city's two longtime consultants, Ken Bartels and Charlie Van Slyke.

Hill has been a part of the council's minority that questions such spending.

But the administration said in the list's "impact" section that reducing the consultant budget may cost the city.

"As an example, much of the real estate work may be instead done by the City Attorney, who has a higher billing rate than the real estate consultant," the city said.

The council's meeting is set for 6:30 p.m. Monday at City Hall.