Burbank City Council Discusses Infrastructure Budget, Projects

0
1970

On May 3rd, Burbank City Council convened for a regular meeting at City Hall.

Per usual, the council briefly reviewed and then voted on the consent calendar. The consent calendar is a grouping of agenda items that are voted on at once.

This week’s consent calendar included a resolution that will vacate a public right of way that is part of Warner Bros. Studios. The consent calendar passed with no opposition.

As a continuation of budget talks carrying over from last week’s meeting, the council discussed Burbank’s Capital Improvement Program (CIP) for the Fiscal Year (FY) 2022-2023, which is in essence the city’s infrastructure budget. The program is led and facilitated by the Department of Public Works.

This year’s CIP theme is “commitment to infrastructure,” which is evident when looking at the proposed $22.5 million dollar budget Public Work’s staff laid out during the meeting. The 2022-2023 CIP budget is much higher compared to the past two previous budgets, which is largely attributable to the abating pandemic and an increase in revenue made from city infrastructure.

Of the $22.5 million in this budget, $10 million will go to maintaining facilities, $8 million will go to street and sidewalk repair, $3 million will go to the Parks & Recreation Department and $1.5 million will go towards traffic and transportation management.

60% of the funding for the budget will come from unrestricted money, which is money that is not tied to any specific project or purpose. 35% of the funding will come from restricted money, which is money that is tied down to a specific project and/or purpose. An additional 5% will come from grant money donated to the city.

At the moment, Burbank has multiple infrastructure projects that are in the works or in the planning phase. Of these projects, the most important and impactful include the reconfiguration of the Olive Ave. and Verdugo Ave. intersection, a reconfiguration of San Fernando Boulevard between Olive Ave. and Magnolia Blvd. and the addition of new traffic safety measures along Glenoaks Boulevard.

In regards to the complicated intersection of Olive Avenue and Verdugo Avenue, city staff would like to see shortening of pedestrian crossings, the realignment of the streets and the addition of new public open spaces. On San Fernando Boulevard in downtown Burbank, city staff would like to see the current two-lane, two-way street become a two-lane, one-way street. Staff is hoping that this would add more room for permanent outdoor dining along the street.

In addition to projects that are in the works, several projects have been completed since last year. A $940,000 renovation of George Izay, Joaquin Miller and Robert Gross parks was completed in July 2022 and several improvements were made to DeBell Golf Course, including a new net and improvements to the driving range.

A video recording of the meeting and it’s agenda can be found here.