Unalaska, AK – The city may have to pull up to $23 million out of savings to complete necessary projects during the next fiscal year. They currently have about $90 million in savings, though much of it is already designated for major projects. The city saved up the money by budgeting conservatively, even in years of high revenues.

One of the largest money draws is the new Carl E. Moses Boat Harbor. Constructing the uplands and the inner harbor will cost around $27 million. The city currently has $12 million in state and city funds, but it is unclear where the rest will come from. City Manager Chris Hladick said the costs for the project have steadily risen.

"It's gone from $8 million to $11 million, to $13 million, to $17 million over the last eight years that I've been here. So it's steadily grown because of the time it's taken to get the permit."

The city is looking into applying for a bond, but the ports currently poor revenue status could make that difficult. The ports enterprise fund is being subsidized by the general fund. Another option would be to pull the money from the bank, which Hladick said could cause other problems.

"We have about $ 90 million in savings, but the interest earning on that money is being used to run the general fund. So if you draw down money from the bank, you affect the general fund."

And the boat harbor isn't the only potential draw. Hladick listed a litany of projects, including paving Ballyhoo Road, installing the third engine at the powerhouse, and expanding the PCR. All of these projects, and mandatory projects for the future such as upgrading the water and waste water treatment plants, will require money from the city's savings account. City staff is also seeking funds from the state and federal governments as well as from grants.

City staff estimates that the projected revenue for fiscal year 2011 will be about $28.9 million. That's up slightly from FY10's budget but down significantly from the actual 2009 revenues of $39 million. However, the city tends to use conservative projections.

Predicting revenues for the city is difficult because about 63 percent of the city's revenues come directly or indirectly from the fishing industry. As fisheries regulations change and fish prices and quotas fluctuate, so do the city's revenues. Though city natural resource analyst Frank Kelty tries to predict what will happen, figuring out the future revenue and hence the future budget is difficult. Hladick said the city is still early in the budget process.

"And over the next three months, we'll refine and redo, and make sure we're looking at the right numbers and try to do our best to make predictions."

They'll also figure out how to fund the new small boat harbor and the other major projects.