Starkville leaders pass proposals to help keep costs down

STARKVILLE, Miss. (WCBI) – Restrictions on area businesses are constricting city budgets, and salaries and services are feeling the pinch.

During Starkville’s board of aldermen meeting on Tuesday, city leaders decided to delay employee pay raises that were set to start this month, until June 18.

The city also agreed on a 60 day hiring freeze.

However, the director of parks and recreation and water treatment operator positions are  exempt from the freeze.

The board also agreed upon a suspension of travel and equipment purchases for the next 60 days, but existing projects are exempt.

Paid administrative leave for city staff will continue till April 21.

Mayor Lynn Spruill feels these are just a few measures the city can take to soften the economical blow.

“As it stands right now, our revenue source is dropping dramatically,” said Mayor Spruill. “Those are some of the things, while I won’t say it’s easy, they are some of the low hanging fruit of things that we can keep from having our costs go up, which is what a pay raise would do. So trying to take costs down and keep them from going up was the effort I was trying to get at with the three proposals this evening that the board were in agreement with.”

Starkville will also enforce a curfew from 10 P.M. to 5A.M.