Fresno council members vote to pass budget for fiscal year

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- After more than a week of review, Fresno council members voted unanimously on a budget that will impact key decisions throughout the community.

Mayor Jerry Dyer says this is the largest budget adopted in the city's history, calling the $1.9 billion budget -- unprecedented.

"This budget provides unprecedented investments in our neighborhoods, in housing, our parks, in public safety, both police and fire department, youth development as well as our intervention and prevention efforts in terms of reducing crime in our city," he said.

In a unified front, the mayor and city leaders presented a continued vision focusing on housing, infrastructure, parks and public safety.

The budget will provide an investment for the highest number of police officers and firefighters in the city's history.

Thirty-seven additional officers will be added this year, totaling 888 for the department, along with 24 additional firefighters.

$10 million was allocated to build a new 911 dispatch center.

The mayor says the city has committed to the largest park budget, with more than $108 million for park development, maintenance and improvements.

The city will use $7.4 million to employ young people through the workforce development program and $1.5 million toward gang and violence prevention.

The city will also make a sizable investment in housing -- a whopping $40 million on top of the already $20 million to expand affordable housing and homelessness.

City Councilman Garry Bredefeld says it's something for everyone, in every district.

"My district, like every other district, is about public safety," he said. "Making sure we have enough officers to respond when there's trouble and this budget does that. It really expands the police force, and that's why I fully support it."

Mike Karbassi says there will also be a massive investment in neighborhood infrastructure, like roads, traffic signals, and sidewalk repairs.

He says there will be a dedicated team to get street racers off the roads - one of the biggest complaints he's had in his district.

"We've had a lot of fatalities in District two from pedestrians, bicyclists and people in cars that get hit by street racers," he said. "We want to make it as inconvenient as possible for them to be in Fresno and get them out of town."

With the rising food costs and soaring gas prices, Karbassi says the council is aware a recession is looming.

"We are going to have to be able to tighten our belts and be careful as we move forward," he said. "Things are optimistic now, but we need to be very careful about what comes in the future."