This Thursday, the Roanoke City Council will be hosting another public meeting so that residents can share their opinions and feedback on the 2026-2027 city budget.
City leaders will be considering feedback on the budget and the real estate tax rate; however, no action will officially be taken on either item.
Mayor Joe Cobb says that no decision has been made on the real estate tax rate, but they are giving the people a chance to give feedback on it, along with other budget issues they’re concerned about.
“People are concerned about the reductions and the shift in funding for the schools,” Mayor Cobb said. “They’re concerned about employee compensation, loss of jobs, and overall adjustments we’ve had to make to the budget that could affect programming for the city or some essential services.”
So far, the city plans on increasing employee compensation by two percent and has made other adjustments across the board.
“We are not funding any new asks from any departments, and we’ve tried to cut costs where we can,” Mayor Cobb said. “Throughout the city, we’ve got a hiring freeze, so we’re not going to be filling any vacant positions right now unless they’re critical within certain departments.”
City leaders will have a budget study on May 4 before officially adopting the budget on May 11.
The meeting will be held on Thursday, April 23, at the City Council Chamber at 7 p.m.