Englewood packet outlines dedicated sales-tax review, capital priorities for budget committee
A June 4 Budget Advisory Committee packet shows Englewood staff planned to review 2025 spending of a voter-approved sales tax and rank capital needs for 2027 through 2031, but the materials do not document the committee’s final action.
A June 4 Englewood Budget Advisory Committee agenda packet shows the committee was scheduled to review 2025 spending from the city’s voter-approved 0.3% dedicated sales and use tax and discuss capital-project rankings for 2027 through 2031.
According to the packet, voters approved the tax in November 2022 and the city estimated it would generate about $3.4 million in 2025. The materials divide that amount between alternate policing services and street maintenance, with about $1.1 million allocated to police-related services and about $2.3 million to street work.
The packet’s 2025 review table lists total spending of $4,924,354 against total dedicated sales-tax revenue of $3,406,127. The materials do not explain that roughly $1.5 million gap in the review table, and they do not show the committee making a formal finding that the money was misused.
The committee’s May draft goals said members wanted to review the dedicated-tax spending by the Police and Public Works departments and record any comments or objections in the meeting minutes. In the June 4 packet, the review form’s Budget Advisory Committee comments column appears blank.
On capital priorities, the packet lists Public Works’ top projects as completing South Broadway Complete Streets, Old Hampden Complete Streets and an asphalt mill-and-overlay project planned for 2027 after lead-service-line work is completed. Police priorities in the materials include renovation or redesign of the Fox Building Annex and replacement of Axon-related cameras and tasers. A broader ranking memo in the packet places Public Works projects near the top of the list, with the police camera system ranked eighth.
The packet says the committee was expected to send a memo with recommendations to the city manager and City Council. But because the available record is limited to premeeting materials, it does not establish whether committee members raised objections at the meeting, changed the rankings or approved the memo in the form presented in the packet.