Staring at more than $500,000 in cuts, Niles City Administrator Terry Eull says the fiscal year 2012 budget is the most difficult one he has worked on in his 13 years with the city.

“This is the most drastic revenue decline I’ve seen,” he said, referencing more than $150,000 in state revenue sharing cuts.

It’s been a difficult process but the city is making headway, Eull said. He will present a draft budget to the city council at Monday’s committee of the whole meeting, which will immediately follow the 6 p.m. regularly scheduled city council meeting.

The proposed budget includes cutting two police officers, including the captain position, a firefighter and street repair workers, Eull said. Other areas targeted for cuts include the summer parks program, the Downtown Development Authority and the Fort St. Joseph Museum, all of which were discussed at last week’s committee of the whole meeting.

But Eull said that after looking at the budget, it appears the council will be able to add back a few of the cut items.

The draft budget is just for the purpose of getting council feedback, Eull said.

“You have to start somewhere,” he said. “We’ve included the proposed cuts and firmed up some of the revenue estimates. So they will be able to actually see the numbers.”

The city must pass a budget by the end of August.