Last year, the City hired a third-party consultant to review the methodology and assumptions built into the financial projections and forecasts used by the Finance Department.

 

Management Partners is a professional management consulting firm specializing in helping local government leaders improve their operations for over 20 years, identifying problems and best practices that reveal ways to increase organizational effectiveness.

 

As a follow-up, the City requested a fiscal sustainability plan that would suggest strategies to balance the budget over the long-term, as well as a pathway to growing the City's Contingency Fund (aka "Rainy Day Fund"). The Council believes this fund should equal a minimum of two-months of the annual General Fund budget, as per recommended best practices for local government.

 

At last night's Council meeting, the firm presented a draft overview of the strategies that may have the greatest impact in providing fiscal sustainability to the City and also assessed the feasibility of implementing each measure. View Council meeting footage and materials here.

 

There will be further discussion of this overview, and a related detailed implementation plan, at the May 21 Council Meeting, and June 21 Planning Session, followed by public outreach in the fall to gather resident input on ways to trim the budget and/or enhance existing revenue sources.  

On April 22, 2019, more than one billion people around the world will take part in the  49th anniversary of  Earth Day in almost 200 countries. Communities everywhere will voice their concerns for the planet, focused on the 2019 theme of protecting endangered and threatened species. Learn what you can do for Earth Day here .

 

The City of Mercer Island has a wide range of sustainability programs in place or under review, but one program that had not yet been achieved was a ban on disposable polystyrene ( aka "Styrofoam") take-out food containers...

 

Last year, a group of motivated Lakeridge Elementary Green Team students, led by parent and School District Green Team chair Nancy Weil, presented a petition to the City Council signed by 200 students and 1300 residents. With many other critical financial projects to juggle, Council was unable to take action, so the students decided to visit local restaurants themselves to encourage a switch to compostable or recyclable containers. The City of Seattle and many other major cities nationwide have enacted similar rules over the past decade, and alternative food service supplies are now easy to find.

 

The owners of Pho'em and Toshi's Teriyaki restaurants, upon learning about the student petition and the environmental impacts of Styrofoam, agreed to make an immediate transition (see photos).

 

"This grass roots effort of children to change our world by being true stewards for our environment while having an impact on adult business owners and our community at large is truly inspirational," Weil said.

 

Styrofoam takeout containers are not biodegradable, cannot be recycled, and use up valuable landfill space. The material is thought to release chemical compounds when in contact with hot, oily, or acidic foods, and small pieces are often eaten by seabirds and marine animals because they float.    

Help improve the livability of Mercer Island by getting more involved in your community! The City Council is seeking a diverse range of citizens to serve on several volunteer advisory boards. 

Appointments to  boards and commissions are made by the Mayor and Deputy Mayor, and affirmed by the City Council. Generally, terms run June 1 through May 31, for a four-year period. Upon appointment, board members can expect to spend approximately ten hours a month serving on the board, although the level of commitment may vary. 

The boards and commissions with positions available are:

For more information on each of these boards or commissions, click on the titles above;  click here for an application.

Contact  City Clerk Deb Estrada (206) 275-7793 or by  email for further information or to have an application mailed to you; the deadline is  Friday, May 3, 2019.   

This one-day event provides residents with a no-cost, anonymous collection of unwanted and expired prescriptions or over-the-counter (OTC) medicines: click here for details. Clean out your medicine cabinet the right way. Flushing medications pollutes our local waterways! Call the City's  Youth and Family Services Department at (206) 275-7755 with questions.