'Dark Days Ahead': Mayor Bill Peduto Says Impact Of Coronavirus Pandemic Will Be Felt On Pittsburgh's Budget, Too
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- Mayor Bill Peduto provided an update Thursday on the city's actions and the rough outlook for its finances amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Peduto said the region is doing better than other parts of the country.
But he did sound an alarm, saying the city is losing millions of dollars after years of fighting off bankruptcy and building up a surplus.
The mayor said to look for cuts next year.
"The planning for our new future includes coming to terms with dark days ahead for the city's budget. The bones of a strong budget remain from the hard lessons we learned through Act 47, but the financial picture is still bleak. There will be a shortfall of tens of millions of dollars this year, even taking into account our $85 million in reserves, which we have built up since 2014. We will have heavy repercussions on our next five years of city budgets," Peduto said.
"Large cuts to spending will likely be necessary," Peduto added.
More information on the Coronavirus pandemic:
- CDC Coronavirus Information
- CDC Global Map of Confirmed COVID-19 Cases
- Pennsylvania Department of Health Information
- Pennsylvania County-By-County Map
- Allegheny County Health Department Information
The Allegheny County Health Department said on Wednesday the number of coronavirus-related deaths has shot up to 38, and the total number of cases of the virus county-wide now stands at 925.
