*This article was published prior to the May 19 Cottage Grove Budget Committee meeting*

COTTAGE GROVE – The Cottage Grove Budget Committee met for the third time last week to discuss budget allocations aimed at addressing community concerns about funding for the Warren Doherty Aquatic Center and the library.

To balance the city’s budget for the 2026-27 fiscal year, the library is facing a proposed 56% budget cut, and there is a proposal to completely eliminate funding for the pool. Community supporters for both facilities have voiced their concerns about the cuts and even offered creative solutions at previous city meetings.

For Thursday night’s meeting, the council tried to decide how to allocate funds for the pool, the library, and community promotions such as Spirit of Bohemia Mining Days, South Valley Farmers Market, Family Relief Nursery, and South Lane Wheels.

City Manager Mike Sauerwein said the budget committee had previously approved a motion to have city staff come back with reallocation plans for the committee to consider. Three options were up for consideration.

Those reallocation options include a $4-per-month utility fee for one year, which would generate around $196,800. A $4 fee multiplied by the roughly 4,100 utility accounts totals $16,400 per month.

Another option is a personnel cost allocation where the personnel costs for the city manager and finance departments are originally split 50% general fund and 50% utilities in the proposed fiscal year budget, but a reallocation would look like 40% general fund and 60% utilities. This would free up about $92,000 of additional general fund resources by moving those costs to the utilities. This would also increase utility fees by an additional 36 cents a month, on top of the already increased rate of $10.76 for the average single-family home.

City councilor Darrel Wilson said he has heard concerns from constituents about increased utility fees.

“The shift to higher utility costs is very concerning to many of the elderly residents and homeowners in our city who are having trouble meeting it now, let alone an increase,” Wilson said. “That’s something that, as representatives of the entire city, we need to keep in mind, shifting a burden onto the homeowners of this city, that they’re going to have trouble meeting.”

The last option they explored was a transfer from the Housing Development Cost Assistance Program Fund to the general fund. On May 11, the council adopted Resolution 2177, which amended Resolution No. 2001 and allows the City Council to transfer funds from the Program Fund. The current balance for the Program Fund is $220,221.

The Housing Development Assistance Programs fund provides grants and loans for the development and preservation of affordable housing.

Awarded as soft funding, these resources enable developers and affordable housing owners to serve households at or below 50% of the area median income. Some members expressed concern about transferring funds from this fund, including Linda Olson.

“I feel threatened by taking the money from our housing promotional money, the ones that are used to build our community and have a return on the investment when we do invest those,” Olson said.

Committee member Ryan Birdseye clarified, “Reallocating the housing development cost assistance fund is just a one-shot thing. This is not a long-term sustainable issue.”

Common ground

Council chair Greg Ervin invited each committee member to share what dollar value they think should be allocated to the pool, library, and community promotions funds. Although opinions varied on how to fund the library, there was common ground on the pool.

The aquatics center originally requested $130,000 from the community promotions budget, but many committee members thought $75,000 would be adequate to sustain it, with a few stipulations.

The conditions that most members agreed would be beneficial for the city is to include a partnership with the pool – and the pool having its own budget.

Ervin recognized the community and partnership the pool hosts and suggested ongoing support from the council would honor that.

“I don’t want to do that anymore as a city without a seat at the table for how it’s operated, for what programs are actually offered, for some way to work with the school district to set up scheduling that there’s an actual seat at the table to ensure that the balance is right for what’s available in the city,” Ervin said.

After each member spoke, a general consensus emerged. Since this was the most agreed-upon solution, the council voted to approve a motion.

Contract with the pool

Committee member Johanna Zee made a motion directing the council to approve a $75,000 transfer from the housing development cost assistance fund to the general fund for community promotions for the aquatic center. Her motion also included that the pool would be its own line item in the budget, not restricted to community promotions, and that a contract with the swimming pool would be pursued.

The motion was carried unanimously.

During the public comment portion of the meeting, Andrew Elliott, co-chair of the Friends of the Warren Daugherty Aquatic Center, said the Friends have been trying to establish a “seat at the table” for the city this last year, and are in favor of the proposal. He thanked the committee for their time and consideration of the pool budget.

“Our next effort, which we have already laid a really good foundation for, is a fundraising campaign. We’re looking to hopefully start an endowment fund. We want to start a scholarship fund for people who can’t pay the increased fees that South Lane is going to institute this year,” Elliott said.

He also revealed that he had invited the council to a dedication ceremony. On Saturday, June 13, the lap pool at the aquatic center will be named in honor of swimmer and coach Bud Taylor.

Since the pool was the only agreeable subject the council voted on, deliberations for the library and how to distribute community promotion funds continued at a May 19 meeting.