Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, November 30, 1994                   TAG: 9411300047
SECTION: CURRENT                    PAGE: NRV-2   EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY 
SOURCE: RICK LINDQUIST STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RADFORD                                LENGTH: Medium

RADFORD COUNCIL DISCUSSES WAYS TO RAISE REVENUE|

As City Council members pored over pages of figures from Director of Finance Jess Cantline, Councilwoman Polly Corn worried over fluctuating and, in some cases, declining revenues.

"I'm looking four or five years down the road and thinking, where is the increase going to come from just to maintain the status quo?" she remarked.

Not necessarily from higher real property taxes, City Manager Bob Asbury explained. Lacking new growth - and new tax revenues - from construction or expansion, "expenditures must be controlled," he cautioned council members, who soon must figure out how the city plans to repay a multi-million dollar bond issue it wants to float to pay for various capital projects, including school expansions.

Corn broke in. "Doesn't that say to us that we're going to have to look ...," she began, then dropped the thought.

Asbury resumed. The real estate tax is a declining revenue source, he pointed out. Ten years ago, half of the city's revenues came from real estate taxes. Only 41 percent do today, and approximately one-third of the city's real estate is exempt from taxes. That means in the future the city likely will rely increasingly on revenues from services and fees, he suggested.

However, cutbacks in federal and state money have had "the most hurtful impact" to local revenues in Radford and elsewhere, Asbury said. He predicted the city would collect "20 cents on the dollar" from Washington on its federal disaster relief claims stemming from last year's ice storms, which cost the city well over $1 million for cleanup and repairs, especially to the city-owned electric system. Asbury called the city's chances questionable to recover the remaining $416,000 claims balance.

Cantline, who said city finances were otherwise sound, predicted utility tax and solid waste revenues would be "short" this fiscal year, which ends June 30, 1995. Some of Radford's big solid-waste customers, including several local industries, have switched to private contractors to collect their trash. The city's collection costs, meanwhile, remain relatively fixed. Asbury said the city annually considers contracting out its solid-waste collection to save money, but he recommended forming a regional collection service as the best approach.

During the regular meeting that followed the budget discussion, City Council:

OK'd spending $5,000 to replace a photocopier for Radford's combined District Court.

Agreed to spend $10,325 for new clothing and pagers for new Radford Volunteer Fire Department members.

Reluctantly approved a resolution to cover an increase in Virginia Retirement System benefits for 47 city employees not covered under a recent General Assembly bill. Council members expressed concern about the legislature's passing a bill that affected some, but not all, Virginia Retirement System employees, and plans to send a letter expressing their reservations to area lawmakers.

Approved a revised version of the regional jail agreement that included wording to let member localities drop out of the jail compact if the state fails to provide at least half the funding.

Appointed Assistant City Manager R.I. "Bob" Lloyd as the city's representative to the Regional Jail Authority. Gary Young was named as alternate.