City council approves FY2025 financing plan
By DON FLETCHER
News Staff Writer
Atmore City Council members gave unanimous approval, as expected, to a $15.48 million financing package to cover operations for the upcoming fiscal year, which begins October 1 and ends September 30, 2025.
The total of $15,483,460 reflects a six-percent increase over FY2024’s budget and does not include pay raises for city employees.
As is usually the case, Atmore Police Department will get the largest chunk (30 percent, $4,602,550) of the budgetary dollars. The other departments with a 10 percent or higher share are Streets & Sanitation (16 percent, $2,455,250), Atmore Fire Department (14 percent, $2,172,050) General Government (13 percent, $2,085,575), and Subsidies & Appropriations (10 percent, $1,537,460).
General Government includes salaries, wages, benefits and payroll taxes on employees not covered in departmental allocations, as well as utilities, telephone, accounting and legal fees, and other general expenses of running the city.
In other business conducted during the meeting, council members:
*Approved the sale to Repton Volunteer Fire Department (RVFD) for $10,000 of a 1999 Sparta pumper engine that has been in reserve since AFD’s newest truck was purchased. Fire Chief Ron Peebles said the fire engine is worth more than that but asked council members to help the volunteer agency out by letting it go at the agreed upon price.
*Approved the scheduling of Escambia County High’s homecoming parade for Friday, October 18. The parade, which is set to begin at 1:30 p.m., will stage at the field behind the former YMCA building on Pensacola Avenue, then head south onto South Main Street, onto Lindberg Avenue and back to the ECHS campus.