Published by Picozzi for Mayor? • Reviewed October 9, 2026 • Historical budget analysis
The proposed direct operating budget.
The FY2027 request discussed on this site totals $671,511. Its three broad components are:
| Cost group | Requested amount | Share of direct total |
|---|---|---|
| Payroll and overtime | $301,516 | 44.9% |
| Utilities | $303,500 | 45.2% |
| Other direct costs | $66,495 | 9.9% |
| Total | $671,511 | 100% |
Shares calculated from the figures above and rounded to one decimal place. These are requested budget amounts, not verified final spending.
Payroll and utilities dominate the request.
Payroll includes the manager, maintenance employees, part-time guards and attendants, and overtime allowances. The utilities category covers natural gas, electricity, water, and sewer. Together they make up about 90.1% of the direct request.
A useful monthly report would compare staffing hours and utility bills with opening days, attendance, and seasonal activity. Those records can explain cost changes more clearly than a single annual total.
Direct cost is not necessarily full cost.
A departmental budget may not capture every related expense. Questions remain about employee benefits, shared City services, equipment, and other costs charged outside the rink’s operating accounts. This site does not add hypothetical amounts for those items or assert that any particular cost was omitted.
Construction and capital funding should also be distinguished from recurring operating spending. Combining them without explaining the period and accounting basis can obscure both.
Calculate the gap on a consistent basis.
The FY2026 projection in the proposed FY2027 document pairs $635,503 in direct expense with $150,000 in revenue. Subtraction gives a $485,503 projected departmental budget gap. The $635,503 includes $61,795 labeled “Misc. Capital Expenditure.” Excluding that line gives $573,708 in remaining departmental expenses and a $423,708 difference from projected revenue. Neither calculation establishes a final audited loss or a full lifetime project cost.
See the complete budget comparison and official budget sources before drawing conclusions.