Kalamazoo releases $344M proposed budget for 2026
The full proposal is available in an interactive format on the city’s website under the City Budgets section. City officials said the 2026 plan is built around community priorities outlined in the Imagine Kalamazoo 2025 Strategic Vision, now transitioning into Imagine Kalamazoo 2035, and reflects direction from the Kalamazoo City Commission’s March 2025 retreat.
The City of Kalamazoo has released its proposed $344 million budget for 2026, a plan that comes in about 11% below last year’s adopted spending due largely to fluctuations in the city’s long-term capital improvement schedule. The decrease is tied mostly to 2025, when Kalamazoo received $110 million in Drinking Water State Revolving Fund dollars for major water-system upgrades. Much of that funding will carry forward into next year as projects continue.
The full proposal is available in an interactive format on the city’s website under the City Budgets section. City officials said the 2026 plan is built around community priorities outlined in the Imagine Kalamazoo 2025 Strategic Vision, now transitioning into Imagine Kalamazoo 2035, and reflects direction from the Kalamazoo City Commission’s March 2025 retreat.
During that retreat, commissioners identified three focus areas to guide the 2026 spending plan: safe community, shared prosperity, and economic vitality. Several programs — some new, some ongoing — are highlighted as key investments in those areas. Under “safe community,” the city is preparing to launch a HomeShare Program in 2026 pending the result of a feasibility study, aiming to pair residents with unused housing space with individuals seeking affordable options. The Critical Code Repair Program would also continue, providing safety-related repairs for homeowners.
“Shared prosperity” initiatives in the proposal include the Emergency Shelter Program, a collaborative effort involving Kalamazoo County, the City of Portage, Southwest Michigan First, and several local service organizations to support operations at the county’s emergency shelter. The Bridges to Career Opportunities partnership with the Northside Association for Community Development would also continue, offering pathways to economic mobility for residents in core neighborhoods.
To support “economic vitality,” the budget includes funding for the Capital Consortium Program, which helps entrepreneurs with limited access to traditional banking secure the capital needed to start or expand small businesses. The program works with the Kalamazoo Entrepreneur Network and the Local Initiatives Support Corporation to provide both funding and the technical support.
Residents will have several opportunities to learn more about the proposed budget and offer input in the coming weeks. The City Commission will hold a budget work session on Monday, December 8 at 5 p.m. during the Committee of the Whole meeting. A formal public hearing is scheduled for Monday, December 15 during the regular business meeting. Commissioners plan to take final budget action on Monday, January 5, 2026, ahead of the City Charter’s requirement that a budget be adopted by January 31. All meetings will be live-streamed on the city’s Facebook and YouTube channels.
Maxwell Knauer is a staff writer for Watershed Voice.
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