July 16, 2026 - Budget Workshop - Afternoon Session

The City of Sebastian held a budget workshop on July 16, 2026, focusing extensively on departmental budgets and financial planning for the upcoming fiscal years. Significant discussion centered on the Building Department's budget challenges, including the need to reduce excessive reserves to comply with state audit requirements. The department plans to revise its fee schedule to balance revenue with operational costs, potentially raising fees to cover a projected $500,000 shortfall while also addressing state mandates to reduce fees due to reserve limits. The workshop also covered capital improvement projects and operational budgets for other city departments such as the airport, roads, fleet management, and stormwater. Notable procurement-related topics included planned software acquisitions for the Building Department, vehicle replacements deferred to future years, and infrastructure projects like runway rehabilitation and street reconstruction. The council discussed strategies to manage reserves, fund transfers between departments, and the impact of loans on fund balances. The meeting concluded with plans to present the budget to the budget review committee and finalize the millage rate for the upcoming year.