The Chowchilla City Council has approved a balanced $24.86 million city budget, including a General Fund budget of $7,195,485.

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“The City Council has worked hard to pass a balanced budget that funds the public’s expressed needs that we heard so clearly during our goal setting workshops, townhall meetings on the budget, requests in the city newsletter for suggestions and input through social media,” said Mayor Waseem Ahmed. “I am also pleased that the strength of our budget has allowed us to meet the needs of our staff through increases in salaries while investing in our streets and sidewalks, economic development, completing grant funded projects and improving the City’s ability to address infrastructure needs.

Over the past fiscal year, Chowchilla saw the loss of jobs at a major manufacturer but offset that loss with the gain of new jobs as a number of new retail businesses opened in the city.

Over the course of the new fiscal year, according to City Administrator Brian Haddix, the City will draw upon the “tools” put in place by council to incentivize new business recruitment as it aggressively pursues new business opportunities in the areas of hospitality, fuels and energy, processing and retail.

The City plans to continue to actively reach out to prospective business through trade shows and events and the efforts to revitalize the downtown will remain a key focus, Haddix added.

“The 2016-2017 Annual Budget maintains public safety service levels; continues to provide substantial investment in planned installation, maintenance and upgrades to roads and sidewalks; directs resources to economic development and job creation; and proposes to maintain partnerships with volunteers and community organizations to meet community service needs,” Haddix said. “This budget also works to take care of the employees the council depends on to achieve its goals while driving forward toward a stronger city.”