2020/09/16 Council Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

September 16, 2020 My remarks will share some of the ways 2020 has inspired innovation in our City teams, and highlights from our 2021 budget. First, I'd like to acknowledge that this has undeniably been the most difficult year our city has faced in our lifetime and an especially difficult budget year. I'd like to express my deepest gratitude to every member of our City teams. In the face of adversity, our teams have truly risen to the occasion and have exemplified everything that makes me proud to lead this City. Working together, and working creatively, you have shown ingenuity, strength and resilience, and all that we can accomplish working together, as one Everett. Thank you. I'll now provide an overview of our budget proposal, which is built on a foundation of quality-of-life priorities. Responsive & responsible government To help stabilize our financial footing, next year we'll be carrying forward some of the reductions in workforce and position eliminations that we made this year, which have been hard, but have forced us to innovate and adapt. Being a responsive government means being attuned to what's going on in our world and community, and adjusting as appropriate. As we have seen from recent events, 2020 has brought to light the need to focus more on equity and addressing systemic racism. My proposed budget builds on our work on equity and inclusion. This year we created a new position for an equity manager, which I'm pleased has been filled by Kay Barnes who has been part of our City team since 2006. We did not add to our City's budget by creating this position; rather we reallocated resources toward this important work to result in no net increase. In her new role, Kay will focus on broadening our reach and more effectively engaging with our Black, Indigenous, People of Color communities, and other marginalized groups. She will also be working on plans to improve inclusion, equity 2,1-2