DANVILLE, Va. – Danville’s Caesars Entertainment Complex is still years away from opening, but the voters’ bet on the casino is already paying off.
The city’s proposed budget has funding for various improvements but without the need for a tax increase.
“Most years, you’re at a choice: do you either cut services or raise rates? Neither one is popular,” said Danville city manager Ken Larking. “We know we’re going to have new tax revenue is coming in, it gives us a lot of ability to catch up on some of the things we have not been able to do.”
Larking presented the proposed city budget to the Danville City Council on Tuesday. The proposal includes funding for a regional park along the Dan River and money for a person to promote tourism in the region.
“We’ve got a lot of great things that are happening, we just have a harder time telling our story because we’ve never had the resources to do that,” Larking said.
The budget also includes $2.4 million to build an updated running track at George Washington High School.
“It meets the needs of the student, it meets the needs of the school system, and it helps promote academics through athletics,” Larking said.
The budget still has to be approved by the city council, which has to happen by the end of June.
“There are lots of opportunities for us to leverage those dollars to go ahead and make investments in our community that will make Danville an attractive place to come live,” Larking said.