Gig Harbor Adopts 2021 Budget

GIG HARBOR, WA — The City of Gig Harbor has approved a $94 million budget for 2021.

In a letter to residents announcing that the budget had been confirmed, Mayor Kit Kuhn explained that this year's budget had been kept somewhat conservative, because city leaders still don't know the full scope of the damages brought by the coronavirus pandemic.

"I am very pleased with this budget as it allows us to keep all our current staff and accomplish our biggest priorities," Kuhn said. "At the same time, we’ve taken a very cautious approach to our revenue expectations for 2021. We still don’t know what the long-term economic effects of COVID-19 will be. We have purposefully built our reserve savings over the last few years and the City is in good financial shape because of that."

Kuhn went on to outline one of his budget highlights: $75,000 in lodging tax grants to support local nonprofits. Those funds can only be used to promote tourism, which Kuhn says will ultimately encourage economic development. The $75,000 will be divided between Harbor Wildwatch, the Downtown Waterfront Association, Permission to Start Dreaming Foundation and the Gig Harbor Film Festival. In addition, another $50,000 has been set aside for other non-profits, who will be able to apply for the second round of funding in spring.

According to the Preliminary 2021 Budget released by the city earlier this fall, city leaders are also putting money towards several important revitalization and construction projects, including:

• The design and permitting of the Gig Harbor Sports Complex.
• A new gangway and float system for the Jerkovich pier.
• Several changes along Stinson avenue, including finishing the roundabout at Rosedale and improving the intersection with Harborview.

In total, the budget sets aside nearly $5.9 million for street capital investments.

Overall, the preliminary budget paints a cautious, but optimistic future for the city:

"The local economy is still running quite strong. The housing market remains strong and appears to be growing stronger. Sales tax receipts are looking to come in at about 2019 and 2020 levels and commercial development activity in the city is not slowing down."

Read the full 2021 Preliminary Gig Harbor Budget