Members of the Big Spring City Council will get their first glimpses of the proposed 2008-2009 budget next week, as city officials prepare for budget work sessions Monday, Tuesday, and perhaps several other nights during the week, if necessary.

Set to begin Monday at 5:30 p.m., the proposed plan will attempt to address several key issues council members directed the staff to explore during the May 20 budget workshop, according to City Manager Gary Fuqua.

“The staff has been working on this since our first budget work session,” said Fuqua. “We feel like it's coming together well, and we'll have everything ready to begin Monday night.”

The staff certainly had plenty of ideas to choose from, as May's workshop yielded a plethora of ideas from the council members.

District 1 Councilwoman Stephanie Horton suggested an ordinance addressing gang activity, as well as stricter code enforcement, a VIP tour for visitors to the city looking to move to Big Spring, the use of motorcycles and hybrid vehicles for city and law enforcement vehicles to stave off rising gasoline cost, a city-run “begging committee” to work to get inmate work crews for the city, and equipment for additional mowing at Moss Creek Lake to alleviate problems with snakes and other wildlife.

District 2 Councilman manuel Ramirez Jr. said one of his focuses for the coming year is recycling, as well as a ban on plastic bags — such as those provided by local merchants Wal-Mart and H-E-B — in the city.

Ramirez also suggested the city look at employees using their vehicles for personal business and ways to cut down on waste by going to a paperless system, as well as consider providing municipal supervisors with Blackberry-type phone systems.

District 3 Councilwoman Jo Ann Staulcup echoed concerns for enforcing city ordinances, and suggested the city look at a program to pick up some of the items they don't normally clean, such as batteries and old tires, as well as look at recycling to help the city recoup some of its cost in code enforcement.

District 4 Councilwoman Gloria McDonald stressed the “clean and green” approach in the coming years, and also said she'd like to see a sign located at the historic spring.

District 5 Councilman Troy Thompkins said he would like to see more done with the community service program, as well as add an employee to the city's Conventions and Visitors Bureau. Thompkins also suggested the city look at a unified Web portal for the various agencies in Big Spring, as well as consider hiring a grant writer.

District 6 Councilman Greg Biddison said he'd like to see better sanitation services for the city's customers. Biddison said he'd also like to see something done to address the homeless problem in Big Spring.

Mayor Russ McEwen only had two items for his budget wish list.

“I feel like we need to do everything in our power to give the city employees a true cost of living raise and continue with the merit pay system,” said McEwen. “Also, we're putting in a multi-million dollar sports complex and a multi-million dollar golf course. It behooves us to make sure the city employees have the right equipment to take care of them.”

The meeting will convene in the City Council Chambers, located at 307 E. Fourth St. City officials say they expect work sessions to take place Monday and Tuesday, and possibly Wednesday, if necessary — all beginning at 5:30 p.m. — but have set aside the entire week in case proceedings run longer than expected.

Contact Staff Writer Thomas Jenkins at 263-7331 ext. 232 or by e-mail at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it