Mayor proposes financial plan for city

BALTIMORE - Pension reform, cuts, paying for trash. Those are just some ideas the mayor has proposed to save Baltimore from financial collapse. 

Wednesday morning Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings Blake hosted a kick off presentation of change to grow.

The mayor will offer a ten year financial plan for Baltimore. She will speak in front of an audience of hundreds of community groups, elected officials, business and institutional leaders.

She plans to map out details and information about the financial plan.

The ten year financial plan has several new initiatives including--rebalancing the way city employees are compensated with more affordable-- sustainable benefits and better wages, also investing in technology and automation to increase productivity.

Other initiatives include plans to:

• Modernize the city's vehicle fleet to reduce maintenance costs
• Negotiate a new schedule for firefighters with higher pay to increase efficiency and prevent future firehouse closures.
• Create a  solid waste enterprise for trash, recycling and sanitation by collecting a user fee which is done in other Maryland Counties and use the savings to cut property taxes, dollar for dollar.

The mayor says eliminating the $750 million structural deficit protects basic city services like police, fire, sanitation and recreation from major future cuts.

The event takes place this morning at 10:30 at the Walters Art Museum on North Charles Street in Baltimore.