Aberdeen Mayor Erik Larson hopes City Council members will ultimately agree with his proposal to beef-up staffing next year but realizes it’s not entirely up to him, he explained during 2017 budget workshop last week.

“A lot of things in this budget are my opinion and you have the opportunity to disagree and change those decisions,” he told the council members. “This is what I think we should do but I’m only one person.”

What was expressed mostly by the council members was apprehension regarding the addition of seven new positions: city administrator, three police officers, two corrections officers and a rental property inspector.

Some major capital improvements are also included within the budget this coming year. Among the requests are repairing the leaky roof at City Hall, upgrades for the elevator, and a more secure front desk at the Finance Department. Fire department headquarters is slated for improvements as well.

“This budget,” said council member Kathi Holder, “well, it makes me very nervous.”

The city administrator concept came up most during the conversations about the new positions. Some council members said they want to wait, perhaps figure out what the position would entail before budgeting for it. Larson pointed out that to have an employee start at any point next year would require budgeting for it during 2017, however.

“We’re not hiring until the second half of the year,” he explained.

It was suggested that the position might also be responsible for human resources director duties since the person in that position left recently. Larson doesn’t envision the city administrator handling those tasks but said near the end of the meeting that it could be an option to consider.

The rental property inspector would be a worker classified as a building inspector 2. Because this person would be eventually inspecting residential and commercial properties, it would take creation of policy for the employee and two to three years to fully implement the rental inspection program, said Lisa Scott, community development director for the city.

The department where this inspector would be assigned, Building and Planning, has been reduced through layoffs and attrition from seven employees to only four since 2001, Scott said.

The police officers will be paid for using money from the 3/10s-of-a-percent tax approved by voters earlier this year. The other four positions will come mostly from the General Fund.

“We need so many things — a phone system, roof on the Police Department, an IT person,” said Council President Peter Schave. “The list goes on and on. A city administrator digs too deep. It’s probably something that’s not right now.”

The budget, as proposed, would require about $220,000 in reserves. General fund revenues for 2017 are estimated to be nearly $13.8 million while expenditures detailed in the spending plan total slightly more than $14 million.

Larson’s proposal leaves the city with 120 days’ worth of reserve funding.

He said use of reserves is to cover one-time capital expenses and that the city’s work force being moved to a lower-tier medical plan and projected economic growth is expected to provide adequate revenue to offset the increased spending. Economic growth projections are based on a variety of information sources, such as the Washington State Economic Forecast Council and Washington State Office of Financial Management, said Mike Folkers, finance director.

“We’re going to have to make some choices,” Council member Dee Anne Shaw said.

The second budget hearing is scheduled on Nov. 30. Council members could adopt it on Dec. 14.