Proposed city budget closes West Salem library, shuts off splash pads at parks  

Salem Public Library hours would be cut roughly in half and water fountains and splash pads would run dry under a proposed city budget released Wednesday. 

The $764 million budget proposal eliminates about 51 full-time jobs across city departments, including more than half of the library’s staff, 30% of parks maintenance and recreation staff, and two part-time staff members at Center 50+.

Thirty-six full-time jobs and three part-time jobs are filled, while the rest are vacant.

That translates into substantial service reductions, including closing the West Salem library branch, shutting off water service to parks and reducing classes and outreach at Center 50+.

While budget cuts mean splash pads at smaller neighborhood parks will be turned off, splash pads at community and urban parks like Riverfront Park will continue to operate this summer, the city said.

The proposed budget would take effect July 1 if approved by the Salem City Council. It addresses a $14 million deficit in the city’s general fund which pays for most city services including police and fire.

There are no proposed job cuts for the city’s police and fire departments.

“Reducing positions in some departments with minimum required staffing, like police and fire, would not result in cost savings,” city spokeswoman Courtney Knox Busch told Salem Reporter in an email. “If we reduce positions in these two areas, minimum required staffing would result in overtime.” 

The budget proposal released Wednesday came from Interim City Manager Krishna Namburi, who indicated she made the proposal “with a heavy heart” in her budget message.

It’s a look at what will happen if Salem voters on May 20 reject a city measure to raise property taxes to fund city services.

“Reductions needed to balance the budget will directly impact the dedicated individuals who provide services to the community,” Namburi wrote in her budget message. Those cuts will result in the “loss of valued community services.” 

Namburi said the city has already communicated with impacted staff and is providing support during the transition. 

If voters approve the tax levy, the sweeping cuts would be avoided. Namburi said in that case, the city budget committee and city council would consider an alternate budget proposal.

Namburi will present the budget to the city’s budget committee April 16. The budget committee’s final meeting is May 7 and then the budget will be sent to the city council for final approval. 

The budget includes other efforts to slash costs, including cutting overnight travel for employees, supply budgets and leaving some jobs vacant. 

Those cost-cutting measures were implemented in February, along with the elimination of overtime with the exception of time required to meet minimum public safety staffing. Those measures saved 41 city jobs, the budget message said. 

The cost-cutting measures implemented in the middle of the current fiscal year are expected to save the city about $1.3 million this year and another $1.1 million in the 2026 fiscal year according to the budget statement, the majority of that savings coming from position vacancies and overtime reductions, city officials told Salem Reporter.

“While these cost controls are not long-term solutions, they are a critical part of our broader strategy to lessen service disruptions, minimize the number of layoffs, and focus spending on the city’s most urgent needs,” Namburi said. 

City officials anticipate $182 million in revenue for the upcoming year and $196 million in expenses in the city’s general fund. The nearly $14 million gap between revenues and expenses will require the city to draw on its reserve funds, an unsustainable practice which will result in future cuts in coming years

Most other city funds, like those that pay for city utilities, are currently in stable financial shape, the budget message said.

In addition to the across the board cost-cutting measures, the city is drawing on some new money to avoid deeper cuts. That includes $2 million from the state after reaching an agreement in March to allow the Oregon Capitol to set up a perimeter around the building, reducing vehicle traffic to two lanes. 

The city also secured $1.6 million to spend on regular expenses by transferring leftover federal Covid relief money from another fund.

The city also expects $900,000 in ongoing savings in 2026 from city Emergency Medical Services starting July 1 when the Salem Fire Department takes over the city’s ambulance system from private provider Falck. 

Parks maintenance and recreation 

Maintenance reductions at the city’s smaller neighborhood parks would turn off irrigation systems which means turf would go unwatered, and drinking fountains and splash pads would run dry. Bathrooms will also be closed in evenings and at other times because of a lack of staffing, and portable toilets would be installed in parks to provide public access to toilets when bathrooms are closed.

The reductions are the result of cutting 15 full-time positions from the parks budget. 

In larger community and urban parks like Riverfront or Woodmansee irrigation would be limited to reservable areas only where irrigation can be selectively controlled. 

Repairs and replacements to amenities like play equipment, benches and drinking fountains would be prioritized based on available funding. Supply purchases, tools, and contracted services would be reduced and staff training would be limited to only essential matters.

City-sponsored summer parks programs and youth sports camps typically held in July and August would be slashed entirely. The city’s recreation department, which runs such programs, would lose one full-time employee and other seasonal workers.

Center 50+ 

At Center 50+, the budget proposal would cut two part-time employees, reducing programming, outreach, hours and customer service to save $177,750. 

The impacts of the cuts mean fewer classes for seniors and an effort to attract volunteers, rather than paid employees, to lead programs which remains a challenge. Center 50+ will also have to reduce programming in the evenings and on weekends. 

The building would operate in the evenings and over weekends for rentals or pre-registered classes only. 

Cutting two part-time staff members would mean a reduction in outreach efforts including yard clean-ups, canine visits and event attendance. Customer response times would increase from 24 hours to 72 hours. 

In-person registration will also be impacted and the city is looking into self-service kiosks and an improved online system. 

Respite services would also be reduced by one day per week, family caregiver trainings would be cut to six trainings annually, and a reduction in technology upgrades would mean the elimination of the summer program guide. 

Salem Public Library cuts 

More than half of employees at the Salem Public Library received notice of possible layoffs Wednesday, according to Knox Busch, and cuts mean the West Salem branch will close and the main branch will operate for only 20 hours a week.

That means the Salem Public Library would slash 23 full-time positions with a reduction in seasonal employees.

Library programming would be reduced, including outreach to service organizations and senior living facilities, tech and reference help appointments, group visits, interlibrary loans, early literacy outreach, educational workshops, multilingual programming, and STEM classes. 

Library resources would focus primarily on basic library circulation, cataloging, and shelving of materials. 

Other city department cuts 

The city’s community services administration would lose a deputy city manager position, a program manager, and an executive assistant. The deputy city manager position is being held vacant after Scott Archer leaves the city Friday.

The legal department would lose a management analyst, shifting those responsibilities to other employees. 

The finance department would eliminate a full-time accountant, placing more pressure on existing employees and possibly resulting in longer financial reporting timelines and putting financial compliance activities and auditing efforts at risk. 

Enterprise services would lose two full-time career positions including a human resources payroll supervisor currently overseeing 1,300 employees, retirements, taxes and more. A security officer would also be eliminated.  

Two enterprise services assistant director positions are expected to be kept vacant as part of additional cost saving measures.

Five full-time positions in the community planning and development department will be eliminated including code enforcement officers, one from parking services and one from the code compliance department. 

The elimination of the parking compliance enforcement officer would lead to less parking enforcement around the city, and one less code compliance enforcement officer would mean fewer employees focusing on urban development and federal housing programs. 

Contact reporter Joe Siess: [email protected] or 503-335-7790.

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