Geneva city officials walked back portions of an aggressive budget response Thursday night after discovering errors and omissions in earlier 2027 financial projections that overstated the city’s anticipated structural deficit by roughly $2 million.
During a special City Council meeting focused entirely on long-range budget planning, officials said a previous projection showing a nearly $3.9 million gap failed to include key revenue categories and contained a duplicate accounting issue tied to state assistance funding. Updated estimates now place the projected structural gap closer to $1.9 million, though city leaders stressed the situation remains financially serious.
Mayor Jim Cecere opened the meeting by acknowledging the urgency surrounding the city’s financial outlook while emphasizing the need for accurate forecasting before major decisions are made. He said the original April projection prompted immediate action from council because of the size of the estimated deficit, but subsequent review revealed that roughly $2.2 million in revenues and transfers had been omitted from the presentation.
City Manager Amie Hendrix said the issue stemmed partly from data being lost while shifting information between multiple budget presentations. Officials also acknowledged the use of artificial intelligence tools for formatting and graphing portions of the presentation, though Hendrix said all financial calculations were produced internally through city spreadsheets and accounting systems.
The discussion quickly evolved into a broader debate about taxes, staffing, city services and the long-term affordability of living in Geneva.
Several councilors argued the city can no longer sustain current spending patterns as residents continue facing rising assessments and some of the highest property tax burdens in the region. Councilor Jan Regan Kane said residents are increasingly worried less about maintaining existing service levels and more about whether they can continue affording to stay in their homes.
Councilor Peter Lavin repeatedly warned that Geneva’s tax structure has become economically unsustainable compared to neighboring municipalities. He argued the city’s problem extends far beyond the immediate deficit projection and reflects years of long-term financial imbalance.
“We need to have a goal for getting that in line,” Lavin said during the meeting while discussing the city’s tax levy and spending trajectory.
Much of the meeting centered on how aggressively the city should move to reduce spending ahead of the 2027 budget process.
A previously discussed vacancy management resolution — which would have imposed stricter council oversight on staffing decisions and vacant positions — was ultimately pulled back before formal action. Cecere said the council did not want to overstep into day-to-day administrative operations, but still intended to provide strong fiscal direction to city management.
Instead, council members indicated they would ask the administration to conduct broader operational reviews and present recommendations for improving efficiency, restructuring positions and evaluating how services are delivered.
One area singled out for possible restructuring was the city clerk’s office, specifically the currently vacant deputy city clerk position. Officials discussed studying models used in other municipalities, including Canandaigua, to determine whether Geneva could reorganize staffing and front-counter operations differently while still meeting legal requirements and maintaining public service levels.
Hendrix cautioned council that achieving a flat or reduced tax levy while preserving existing services would likely require significant operational changes and difficult decisions. She repeatedly emphasized that the city manager’s proposed budget can only formally present one spending plan, though supplemental scenarios and alternatives can still be provided to council for discussion.
Council also reviewed updated reserve fund projections, pension assumptions, health insurance cost trends and concerns surrounding uncertain state aid funding. Officials noted Geneva’s water and sewer reserves have improved dramatically over the last several years after previously falling to critically low levels.
The meeting also touched on the citywide reassessment process and its potential impact on tax bills. Hendrix said current projections suggest reassessments alone could lower the city tax rate significantly, though council members stressed that lower rates do not necessarily translate into lower bills for individual property owners if assessed values increase sharply.
By the end of the nearly hourlong discussion, council had not formally adopted final budget targets, but members broadly agreed the city must begin preparing for tighter fiscal controls, more disciplined forecasting and a multi-year effort to stabilize taxes while addressing long-term structural challenges.
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