CITY HALL : INGLEWOOD : Casino Revenue to Help Balance Budget

The City Council, in a 4-1 vote, approved a $161-million budget that included no layoffs and maintained services without a general tax increase, said City Manager Paul D. Eckles.

The 1994-95 budget was balanced with an expected $4 million from the Hollywood Park Casino, which opens Friday, Eckles said.

The new revenue is also being used to fund two new police programs, including 4,000 hours of police overtime for curfew enforcement and nine new police officers for a community policing program based in local elementary schools, Eckles said.

The budget also includes an average 3.5% fee increase on residents’ water bills. The increase covers the higher cost of buying water from the Metropolitan Water District while the city’s water treatment plant is being renovated, Eckles said.