Serving homeless families, Hope House of Sedona added to list of Community Service Providers

The city of Sedona looks to spend $431,261 more than last year in funding to seven local nonprofits that serve community needs.

The Sedona City Council is set to weigh renewal of its service provider agreements with the organizations for a requested $2,478,915 in ongoing funding and $315,000 in one-time requests as part of its fiscal year 2026-27 budget deliberations.

This year’s providers include: Community Library Sedona, Sedona Community Center, Sedona Historical Society, Humane Society of Sedona, Sedona Recycles, Hope House of Sedona and Verde Valley Caregivers Coalition.

Additional work sessions took place Wednesday and Thursday, April 22 and 23, to continue the budget discussions that began on the April 15 overview.

The Citizens Budget Work Group offered recommendations on which contracts merit continued city support and at what level. Among those seeking approval is Hope House of Sedona, the city’s newest service provider partner, which is approaching its fifth anniversary in Sedona.

Now in its 13th year, the CBWG reviewed and presented recommendations to City Council on this cycle’s current 15 decision packets, which total a potential $1.3 million in one-time spending and $300,000 in ongoing costs, not including discussions around a potential support agreement with local schools.

The packets cover individual purchases and initiatives that city staff are seeking approval for, with the largest being a $300,000 advertising contingency for destination marketing.

This year’s CBWG members were Jean Christophe Builet, Dave Garten, Ed Kettler, Bob Lewis, Robin Low, Judith Patton, Jolene Pierson and Lance Waldrop.

CBWG presented recommendations on funding for the renewal of community service provider contracts, formal agreements through which the city financially supports independent local organizations that deliver public services the city does not directly provide itself.

Community Library Sedona

The largest proposed service provider contract is with the Sedona Public Library, which is requesting $1,058,963 in ongoing funding for FY27, along with a one-time capital contribution of $150,000. The CBWG recommended full support, citing its confidence in the library’s operations and plans and suggested the one-time request could be a city match.

The city’s current year provider contract is $963,518, up from $541,960 in FY23, $865,200 in FY24 and $896,350 in FY25. That growth goes back to 2023, when the Yavapai County Board of Supervisors cut $475,000 in library funding to municipalities, citing inflation — the city of Sedona stepped in to help fill that gap.

Sedona Community Center

Sedona Community Center, which locally runs the Meals on Wheels program and provides recreation, food service, and social gatherings, is requesting $342,825 in ongoing funding along with $75,000 in one-time support to build a new Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant rear access ramp and install mini-splits in its uninsulated dining room.

“I can have up to 50 in the building for lunch, and then in the different meeting rooms, I can have 75 seniors in the building at any one time for different activities,” Executive Director Marjorie Harris said, later adding, “when the summers come, that room gets to be almost 90 degrees.”

CBWG did not recommend funding the one-time requests because only one bid was obtained by SCC for the ramp, and because “we thought that the way they intended to spend it was kind of like putting a Band-Aid on a heart attack,” Pierson said. “They have a building that is completely uninsulated, and they wanted to put in mini splits. And we just thought, that’s not the cure for that particular problem.”

Councilwoman Melissa Dunn suggested Verde Valley Caregivers could potentially help SCC build the ramp.

VVC Director Kent Ellsworth said his organization has volunteers that regularly build wheelchair ramps to help Sedona residents safely exit their homes and that he is “open to exploring a good partnership” with SCC.

Sedona Historical Society

The Sedona Historical Society is requesting $200,000 in ongoing funding and $25,000 for improvements to Cooks Cedar Glade Cemetery. It matches a pledge already committed by the Baney Corporation as part of its proposed Village at Saddlerock Crossing development which is near to the cemetery, and $15,000 for a wall improvement at the Jordan Historical Park.

Spickard and council discussed handling the Jordan Historical Park wall improvement directly through the Parks & Recreation Department rather than routing funds through the society’s contract. The CBWG did not recommend the one-time funding. Councilman Derek Pfaff voiced support for the cemetery improvements, saying the current state of the grounds didn’t reflect well on the city.

Humane Society of Sedona

The Humane Society of Sedona’s request is for $323,127. The CBWG supported the funding, citing inflation, greater demand for services and a difficult fundraising environment, though the recommendation was not unanimous, passing the CBWG with a 6-1-1 vote.

Sedona Recycles

Sedona Recycles, which has partnered with the city since Sedona’s incorporation, is requesting ongoing funding of $289,000 along with a one-time contribution of $50,000 to help offset the purchase it made this year of a new bailer.

Hope House of Sedona

Hope House of Sedona, a transitional housing organization serving homeless families, is approaching its fifth anniversary as the city’s newest Community Service Provider, a designation pushed for by Dunn during the December priority retreat. A request for $135,000 in city funding is being sought.

“Hope House of Sedona, we fully supported their request. Their Executive Director [Turiya Weiss] was passionate, their presentation was very compelling, and we were extremely impressed,” Pierson said.

Verde Valley Caregivers Coalition

Verde Valley Caregivers Coalition includes among their services medical transportation to get residents to appointments and is seeking $130,000 in FY27, up from $89,094 in FY26.

Future

In next year’s budget process, Kettler suggested that decision packets are labeled with which City Council priority it falls under, and how it supports that priority, but praised the packets for being better written and more concise.

“We’re very happy as a group with the process and the staff support,” Kettler said. “It went pretty smoothly. We did have a lot of productive meetings, and we think we could handle a much bigger scope. I was up here last year and said we needed to have a bigger scope. [I’ll] repeat myself, we’d like to see more of the base budget, more of the capital projects next time.”