Airport, golf course operating in red

The operations of the Golf Course Center and Brownsville/South Padre Island International Airport this fiscal year have been as erratic as their balance sheets, city staff suggested at Wednesday’s City Commission meeting.

The departments continue to strain city finances and are unable to generate sufficient revenues to off-set their expenses.

Both departments continue to operate in the red according to the city’s financial report for the third quarter, which ended on June 30. They also require a significant infusion of taxpayer money from other funds, as they have required for years. And if history is any guide, things won’t change in the 2008 fiscal year, which begins October 1.

“We need to raise the green fees,” city Finance Director Pete Gonzalez told the commission of the mu-nicipal golf course’s operations. The city considers the course a public park.

“Hopefully it will get better,” said City Manager Charlie Cabler.

Gonzalez and Cabler told the Commission that events this fiscal year led to an impact on revenues. The center was closed for a while in order to deepen and add ponds to assist drainage in the country club area. Then there was terrible weather that kept golfers away.

The airport similarly drains city funds.

Transfers from other funds to subsidize operations there are at $1.7 million now, compared to $1.5 mil-lion last year.

By the time the fiscal year is over, Gonzalez estimates that $2.6 million will have been transferred from city coffers to the airport to make ends meet.

Airport management has been attempting to sell buildings at the airport to make up the losses, but it hasn’t happened, the commission learned.

Gonzalez’s comprehensive finance report on these departments and others provided commission members with a base to begin preparing for the upcoming fiscal year budget

Commissioner Charlie Atkinson chaired the meeting as Mayor Pat M. Ahumada Jr. was absent, attend-ing to Brownsville Public Utilities Board matters. Commissioner Ricardo Longoria Jr. also did not attend the meeting.

City’s third quarter financial report, which ended June 30.

Golf Course Center: Over the same period last year, revenues from fees decreased $102,017 and ex-penditures increased $176,361. The net loss is $305,979 compared to $42,656 for the same period last year.

Taxpayers have subsidized the center by nearly $450,000 already and the sum is expected to increase before the fiscal year is over in September.

Airport Fund: Over the same period last year, revenues decreased $4,102 and expenses increased $384,153 (15.94 percent).

The city has transferred nearly $2 million to subsidize operations and there are still three more months left in the fiscal year.

Source: City of Brownsville