Page 38 - Hurst FY19 Approved Budget

the construction of a parking garage and Justice Center. The debt rate decreased to
$0.1586172 for fiscal year 2013-2014 due to the refunding of debt in 2012-2013. The
debt rate decreased again by 1.3 cents in the adopted 2014-2015 budget due to the
payoff of previously issued debt. In fiscal year 2015-2016 the city issued debt for Pipeline
Road Phase III reconstruction and took advantage of economic conditions to refinance
existing debt. During the 2016-2017 fiscal year, the city again refinanced existing debt
and issued $1.2 million for a new fire truck that was scheduled to be replaced, and in the
2017-2018 budget the debt rate decreased again in part to an increase in values. For 2018-
2019 the debt rate decreased to $0.108449. Refunding has provided significant savings
in debt service over the past several years through low interest rates with no extension
of the original maturity. Potential refunding, or refinancing, of existing debt is evaluated
on an ongoing basis and opportunities to take advantage of lower interest rates will be
exercised; however recent changes in federal laws have limited the city’s flexibility in
debt refundings. As previously discussed, staff is currently evaluating the issuance of
debt for roads, major facility repairs/improvements, and a new animal services center
and dog park. All city debt is issued with fixed interest rates and provisions allowing
for refinancing under favorable market conditions at certain time intervals. Information
concerning the Debt Service fund is provided in the Other Funds section.

Long Term Strategic Plan Process

Each year, a formal review and revision of strategic plans is performed by the City Council
before the budget process begins. In 2017, the City Council met in March for a Strategic
Planning Session and took a new step in establishing the city’s first vision statement
and community values along with six strategic priorities. They met again in 2018 and
reaffirmed the city’s vision, mission, strategic priorities, and values. The results were
communicated to city staff to ensure they understood City Council’s policy direction.
Staff Action Plans prepared from the review influenced and guided the development
of the approved budget and the multi-year financial overview. The Action Plans and
strategic priorities for 2018-2019 are included in the budget.

Economic Development and Redevelopment Efforts: An extremely important part of
the Action Plans for the City of Hurst’s long-term success is the Economic Development
and Transforming Hurst policies. Among other strategies, the policies focus on the
following:
• Continue aggressive business retention and development programs
• Strengthen relationship with North East Mall to remain vital and community
friendly
• Target businesses that are underrepresented in the area but growing in Region
• Continue to utilize state-of-the-art technology for economic development
• Complete final recommendations for the Sustainability Plan and implement
action plans identified

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