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Council Members Skeptical of Mayor's Budget Promises

San Diego City Council members began hearings Wednesday of the mayor's proposed budget. They had plenty of questions about the mayor's claims that his cuts will not result in any reduction in services

Council Members Skeptical of Mayor's Budget Promises

San Diego City Council members began hearings Wednesday of the mayor's proposed budget. They had plenty of questions about the mayor's claims that his cuts will not result in any reduction in services. KPBS reporter Alison St John has more.

The city's parks and recreation department maintains 180 neighborhood parks, over 50 recreation centers, three golf courses and 13 swimming pools.

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The mayor says next year's budget will keep park and rec maintenance at current levels.

But council members like Tony Young are skeptical of that promise, given that the budget cuts 30 ground maintenance workers, five park rangers, and other resources.

Young : I don't believe that the service levels will be the same, so what I've done is get my staff to go to all the park and recreation centers and got a whole list of things that are being provided.

The city council's independent budget analyst Andrea Tevlin says it'll be difficult to know if services are reduced because there's no detailed record of existing services. She says with more than 80 positions to be eliminated from parks and rec, it'll be important to monitor how the budget actually affects city residents.

Alison St John, KPBS News.