Residents and neighborhood leaders urge restoration of Neighborhood Leaders funding at Clarke County FY27 budget hearing

The Athens-Clarke County Commission held a special called public hearing June 4 on the mayor's recommended FY27 budget, hearing public testimony and discussing proposed amendments that include funding for the Neighborhood Leaders Program, fuel and parking revenue adjustments, and enterprise-fund reporting.

Neighborhood leaders and residents delivered multiple appeals for continued support for a program they described as a local safety net. Patrick Howard, a neighborhood leader with Family Connection Communities and Schools, told the commission the program functions as an "extension of the family member," helping residents navigate resources and preventing crises that would cost the county more later. "Without your money, we can't do the work," Howard said.

Alice Kenman, board vice president of Family Connection Communities and Schools, said the leaders also provide data that the county requests and offered a daily workload snapshot: "neighborhood leaders field around 385 unique phone calls, emails, and texts every single day," she said, arguing that personal stories help humanize those figures.

Resident Danielle Shields described receiving food and referrals through the program and asked the commission to "keep supporting this program because it does make a difference in the community and in our lives."

Commissioners and staff confirmed where Neighborhood Leaders funding appears in the mayor's recommended budget and debated next steps. Staff said the line-item had previously totaled $1.1 million and that the mayor's proposal reduces that amount to $722,661 in the housing and community development section; staff also said the funded plan indicates eight positions financed from that source. Commissioners noted the $380,000 difference represents roughly a 35% reduction from last year and discussed whether to treat any restoration as a one-time bridge allocation rather than an ongoing commitment.

Budget staff told the commission that higher-than-expected digest revenue (about $1.6 million) and other adjustments provided room to add items without deep cuts; they estimated the county could put roughly $500,000 into fund balance while also using some additional dollars for amendments. Staff reported the available fund balance at about $13 million to $14 million and said the proposed adjustments would use roughly $7.5 million of that balance.

Several commissioners argued for restored funding to be temporary while the county secures longer-term commitments from partners such as the school district and private donors. "We need to commit to talking to the school district in earnest," one commissioner said. Staff and commissioners discussed treating any restoration as one-time fund-balance spending so the base budget next year would still reflect the lower ongoing figure unless the commission later votes to continue it.

Commissioners also addressed related budget items that arose during public comment. Staff said the mayor's recommended budget includes an estimate of $400,000 in the general fund and another $200,000 in non-general funds (total $600,000) to cover elevated fuel costs, and noted that actual need will depend on how long elevated prices persist. Commissioners asked for a clearer, single-page breakdown of enterprise funds (airport, landfill/solid waste, water and sewer, stormwater) and staff agreed to extract those pages for easier public review. Staff also confirmed downtown parking revenue projections of $4.8 million in FY27 and said 40% of net parking revenue goes to ADDA under contract.

The agenda report that will appear at the next meeting will include options to approve the recommended budget with the discussed changes; commissioners may still introduce additional adjustments at that meeting. A motion to adjourn closed the special called hearing.

Votes at a glance: Motion to adjourn (no roll-call tally recorded in the transcript).