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Lakewood Government

Monday, November 19, 2012

No Layoffs Expected at City Hall in 2013

City presents 2013 budget to Lakewood City Council.

During the past several months, officials at Lakewood City Hall have been head-down, working to finish next year’s budget. And last week, Mayor Michael Summers presented the 2013 budget to Lakewood City Council. Not unlike last year, the news wasn’t fantastic, but the budget is “structurally balanced.”  The projected $33.3 million of revenue in 2013 is nearly $2.75 million less than the $36.05 in 2012 — meaning that the city will be working with revenues “comparable to the 2002 levels.”  Summers has said there are a few reasons for that.  One of them is a 50 percent cut to the Local Government Fund. In addition, the state eliminated the estate tax. A 4-percent reduction of the property tax — because of dropping home values — hasn’t helped …

Christina Cocchiarale Ward

8:23 am on Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Why layoffs? Why can't some (or all of them) take a pay cut to help? Makes a heck of a lot of sense to me.   more ›

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

One Year in Office: Mayor Has High Hopes for 2012

After one year in office, Mayor Michael Summers lays out his objectives for the upcoming year.

Michael Summers learned quite a bit about priorities during his first full year as mayor. When he accepted the post — filling the void left when then-mayor Ed FitzGerald left for the county executive gig — housing was his No. 1 priority. It still is. But Summers said he’s got a list of nine objectives he’d like to work on in 2012. “These objectives define the scope of our planned work,” he said. “From last years' experience, issues will come to us that are not planned as well.” He laid them out with Lakewood Patch. Here they are: Continue to provide core services that meet the needs of all Lakewood citizens Right-size local government following state cuts Improve ease and speed of customer access to information, answers, concerns and …

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