Tempe City Council approved the elimination of 100 city jobs at an issue review session Thursday night.
"We're in a fluid economic situation, and we have to adapt," said City Manager Will Manley, who presented the plan to the council. "So we adapt as necessary."
The number of city employees will be reduced from 1,700 to 1,600. Twenty-five positions have already been eliminated and 75 more are expected by July 1.
"We're trying to do it through voluntary retirement," Manley said. "We're hoping we can downsize… through a voluntary program rather than involuntary layoffs."
Jobs already eliminated include a fine arts coordinator, two park ranger positions and a city council chief of staff.
"We are eliminating jobs that have the least impact on the community," said assistant city manager Patrick Flynn.
Some areas of the city are exempt from the cuts, such as Transit, the Water Department and Housing because they are either federally funded, receive funding through fees or are funded through a dedicated sales tax.
Manley added that the elimination of jobs was the only way to curb the estimated $8.2-million budget shortfall.
Manley attributed the loss of city revenue to the smoking ban and new retail competition in Chandler.
Revenue from retail sales tax accounts for almost 50 percent of the city's budget. Current revenue is down 5 percent compared to October of last year, according to Manley.
The city council has adjusted Tempe's estimated revenue for the 2002-2003 fiscal year from $128.6 million to $120.4 million.
"We're dealing with the situation as best as we can," said Tempe Mayor Neil Giuliano. "I think the [city] manger has done a good job of laying out what our options are, and now we just need to implement them."
Reach the reporter at meagan.pollnow@asu.edu.
