We're two months into 2013... but this week the city will be looking back at 2012 as it prepares to tell us about it's status financially.
KSFY News sat down with the mayor today to get a preview.
The director of finance will present the city's preliminary financial results for last year this Tuesday.
But in an exclusive interview with the mayor today he tells us, for the third year in a row, the city's piggy bank is bursting at the seams.
The mayor is excited the city will be adding more money to it's piggy bank on the operating side, which he says is good for growth.
"On the capital improvement side, we got money left over for again, the third year in a row. we will be presenting some numbers and ideas to the city council to let them decide how they'd like to spend it," Mayor Huether said.
And it's the growth of the city that has the city's revenue numbers looking good.
"Our sales tax revenues came in higher than what we had projected. People are building again, they're growing again, they're investing again and we're reaping the rewards for that," Mayor Huether said.
But the mayor also credits the secret to our success is spending wisely.
"Living within our means, we actually save more than we spend. our families do that, our businesses do that and city government does that. I think it's a mantra for all of America," Mayor Huether said.
Usually, the city tries to save about a quarter of it's normal operating expenses for a rainy day.
"It's going to be closer to 35, 36 percent. In a way, that's good thing but we actually have to talk about bringing that down a little bit," Mayor Huether said.
And the mayor believes one way of spending the surplus is to address the city's growing pains.
"Taking care of these roads, ensuring that we keep up with growth in things like public transportation, arterial roads, ensuring public safety," Mayor Huether said.
The mayor credits the population growth here to many factors, such as it's a safe place to live and a fairly inexpensive place to live, not to mention the city's low unemployment rate, all make the city an attractive place to live.
Overall, he believes the city balances progress with prudence.
