Ald. Gene Feldman (9th) has proposed a budget amendment that would double rooming house license fees — which apply to Northwestern dormitories and Greek houses — but NU officials and fellow aldermen pointed out the plan has a slight problem: It’s been done.
Feldman said Saturday the fee, untouched since 1975, is due for an increase. But according to Evanston City Council minutes, it was raised in 2000.
The city doubled the fees that year, resulting in a substantial increase in the university’s tax burden, said Eugene Sunshine, NU vice president for business and finance.
“I suspect the alderman forgot,” Sunshine said.
Ald. Stephen Engelman (7th) also said Feldman had erred but said he was not sure how much the rooming house fees increased in 2000. Feldman could not be reached for comment Thursday night.
The council didn’t have time to discuss Feldman’s budget amendment after he presented it in the closing minutes of Saturday’s budget meeting. The city must pass a 2003-04 budget that balances its projected $3.5 million deficit by Feb. 28.
Feldman said the increase in rooming house fees would generate $188,000. His amendments to City Manager Roger Crum’s budget proposal would add $888,000 in revenue for the city.
Another amendment would increase the tax on paid parking spots by 25 percent, amounting to $300,000 for the city.
Parking tax increases would affect NU “dramatically,” Sunshine said, because of the university’s many paid parking spaces.
Feldman’s plan would reverse a number of controversial cuts proposed in Crum’s budget: the elimination of middle school liaison officers, closing the South Branch Library and reducing overtime for Evanston fire department.
“It now looks like we will be getting more revenue than anticipated,” Crum said.
Feldman also would eliminate a proposed 75-cent charge for senior citizens who ride a bus to the Levy Senior Center, 300 Dodge Ave., and prevent cutting the center’s program manager and street maintenance worker positions.
Additional revenues raised by Feldman’s plan would allow the city to lower Crum’s proposed 8.6 percent increase in the city’s portion of the property tax.
But even with the new revenue, Crum said the city’s projections should remain conservative. The unpredictable economy, pending lawsuits and unsettled labor contracts could all tip the budget balance, he said.
Ald. Steven Bernstein (4th) said he liked Feldman’s proposal because it found new sources of revenue. He also said he thought Feldman picked the right cuts to restore.
“If we can continue to find ways to undo some of the things the city manager’s budget does, we should do what we can,” he said.
The Daily’s Dalia Naamani-Goldman and Erin Ailworth contributed to this report.
