Message from the City Manager: Culver City Adopts Balanced Budget

Published on June 09, 2026

Dear Culver City Community,

I am proud to share that the Culver City City Council has adopted the Fiscal Year 2026–2027 Budget, marking an important step forward for our organization and our community.

When I began serving as City Manager six months ago, I made a commitment to the City Council, City staff, and the Culver City community that we would deliver a balanced budget. I am pleased to say we have met that commitment.

This adopted budget balances the General Fund while preserving core City services, protecting our workforce, and avoiding layoffs. It reflects the focused, disciplined work by City staff and the thoughtful direction from the City Council. It also reflects what we heard from the community: focus on the basics, invest in visible improvements, strengthen transparency, and remain accountable.

A year ago, the City faced a much more challenging financial outlook. Today, Culver City is in a stronger position. The adopted budget improves our financial footing, restores long-term fiscal discipline, and helps create a more stable path forward.

This budget is grounded in a back-to-basics approach. It invests in the services and infrastructure residents experience every day, including streets, sidewalks, parks, public facilities, housing, and community engagement. These are the fundamentals that support quality of life, public trust, and the long-term health of our City.

The budget also replenishes the City’s Contingency Reserve, increasing reserves from 21% to 27% of the General Fund Operating Budget, and establishes new reserves to help manage uncertainty and support long-term financial stability. These steps are important because responsible budgeting is not only about balancing one year. It is about preparing Culver City for the future.

I also want to thank the community for your patience, participation, and trust throughout this process. Over the past several months, hundreds of residents, businesses, employees, and community members took part in our “Let’s Talk, Culver City” and “Let’s Talk Budget, Culver City” conversations, completed surveys, asked questions, and shared priorities. Your input helped shape this budget and reaffirmed the importance of maintaining the basics, investing carefully, and being clear about tradeoffs.

Our work does not end with budget adoption. In many ways, it begins here.

The adopted budget advances a more data-informed and priority-based approach to City government. We will begin measuring progress through Key Performance Indicators tied to City Council priorities, expand transparency through future reporting tools, and continue to evaluate how well our investments are producing results for the community.

As we move into implementation, we will also begin a new phase of community engagement: “What’s Next, Culver City.” These conversations will give residents, businesses, and community partners another opportunity to help shape the future of our City. We want to hear what matters most to you, what needs attention, and how we can continue walking this path together.

Culver City is stronger because of its people. Thank you to the City Council for its leadership, to City staff for their hard work and professionalism, and to the community for staying engaged in this process.

Together, we have taken an important step toward a more stable, accountable, and community-centered future. I look forward to continuing this work with you.

Sincerely,

Odis Jones
City Manager