By BRENT MARTIN
St. Joseph Post
St. Joseph City Manager, Mike Schumacher, says being a newcomer gives him a different perspective at city hall, including what the city spends money on.
Schumacher, who has been with the city since late January, has been leading his team as it puts together a budget for the next fiscal year.
“I ask the question, why, a lot. And they understand that. As I adapt to the organization and the organization adapts to me, it’s just been a very positive experience,” Schumacher tells KFEQ/St. Joseph Post. “Having that level of agreement inside City Hall is rare and we’re very fortunate to have it.”
It isn’t a throw away question. It is the question, according to Schumacher.
“The answers to the question of why results in, yeah, that is how we want to do it, which is the best answer, right? So, we’re implementing a path to get there,” Schumacher says. “When (the) budget is rolled out, there will be some significant changes, not necessarily in funding, but in financial planning.”
As an example, Schumacher says the city should never be surprised that it needs a new firetruck. He says annual budgets need to fund the city for the upcoming year as well as look down the road to future expenditures.
Schumacher came to St. Joseph after serving as Lebanon City Administrator. He says he found a very good budget team in place, which is in agreement on the direction of the city.
“Everyone knows where they want to go. It’s the same place. Now we have to come up with a strategy and implement getting there,” according to Schumacher. “We look very forward to that.”
The City of St. Joseph fiscal year begins July 1st. The city budget totals approximately $200 million. The city council hopes to have the first reading of the budget during the May 27th meeting with a final vote scheduled for June 9th.
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