Even though the Town of Vidalia may be operating with fewer employees, local residents and business people say they have not noticed a change in the services the town provides.

Since July 1, when Mayor Buz Craft took office, the new administration has cut more than 10 percent of the town’s workforce. The cuts have saved the town more than $900,000, Craft said.

In June, the city had 186 employees on its books. As of the last payroll period in November, the city had 170 employees. Since then, even more employees have left the town, leaving openings that have not been replaced, Craft said.

Even with the cuts, Craft said he does not believe the town has skipped a beat in performing its services.

“Our employees are working very hard, and they are getting the job done,” Craft said. “I see that we are doing the work of the town.

“I am extremely pleased with the team we have in place. I feel like we have a professional team that believe it is an honor to serve the citizens of Vidalia.”

Pat McDonough of McDonough’s Package Store said when he goes to Nikki’s Restaurant for coffee in the mornings, the people he talks with are happy about the job the new administration is doing.

“I think it’s clear everyone thinks things are moving in a positive direction,” McDonough said. “I think people are actually happy with the cuts — we had too large a budget for a town our size.”

Jeff McClure with The Bakery Cottage said he hates to see people lose their jobs, but he said the town has to operate within its means.

“It’s just like within a family, everyone has to pull their weight to make it work,” he said. “I haven’t noticed a difference in services. I think things have been working well.”

Many of the cuts were at the Vidalia Conference and Convention Center, including security staff and the center’s marketing department, Craft said.

McDonough said he has been to two functions at the convention center since July.

“Even with the cuts, the convention center seems to be running well,” he said. “Other services are just a phone call away, as they always have been.”

Many of the town employees who were cut did not work for a specific department and were considered floating positions, Craft said.

Because of a pending lawsuit against the town by former employees, Craft said he could not discuss many specifics about where other cuts were made.

Craft said he is looking at cutting the town’s staff even further, but declined to go into specifics.

“Maybe we have one or two more departments where we will have to look at, just looking at the size as a municipality — are we overstaffed?” Craft said. “Some of these aspects we are investigating as we speak, as we are still in the process of amending our budget.”

At the November board of aldermen meeting, the mayor mentioned concerns with the town’s police department budget. In the meeting, he expressed alarm that the budget had jumped from $1.9 million in 2010 to $3.4 million in last year’s budget.

Two of the town’s five aldermen said Thursday they supported the cuts.

Alderman Robert Gardner said he believes the city is running smoothly as services are concerned.

“It doesn’t seem like we are lagging at all,” he said. “I know you hate to see a person lose their job, but sometimes it is something you have to do.”

Gardner said he was concerned that many town employees could not previously say what they were doing each day.

“The mayor sat down and discussed job descriptions, and some could not give him a detailed description of what they did,” Gardner said. “When you are looking at making cuts, and you find someone is just like holding their feet all day, positions like that are the ones we are going to look at as far as cutting.”

Gardner said he knows people have been critical of the mayor making these cuts, while also adding positions such as Town Manager Bill Murray and assistant city clerk Jay Lasyone.

“He put in people who he feels like will make him stronger,” Gardner said. “Do I agree with all the people? I can’t tell you I do, but I feel like he did it to make himself stronger in areas where he might be lacking.

“I feel like thus far (Craft) is doing an outstanding job.”

Craft said even with Murray and Lasyone, the city is still saving more than $900,000 in salaries and benefits.

Alderwoman Sabrina Doré said along with Lasyone and Murray, she has been equally impressed with City Clerk Vicki Byrnes.

“They have done a fantastic job in discovering financial issues in the budget, which is going to save us a lot of money going forward,” she said.

Doré said even with the reduction in staff, the town continues to operate at a high level.

“The services in Vidalia we provide to the community have always been fantastic,” she said. “And we haven’t missed a beat.”

Doré said much of the credit goes to the present employees. From the managers down to the individual employees, the staff takes the town’s work seriously, Doré said.

“We have good managers in place who require a lot of their employees, and the employees require a lot of themselves,” she said. “They enjoy what they do and we benefit from their hard work in that way.”

More department cuts are likely coming as the aldermen and mayor continue to gain experience, Doré said. Doré, Gardner and

Alderman Tommy Probst, along with Craft, are in the first year of their first term in office.

“I believe that in order for us to bridge the gap between revenues and expenditures, more cuts will have to be made,” she said.

Probst said he did not want to comment on the cuts, saying that his entire focus is on reworking the budget.

“The only comment I have got is we are working hard on amending the budget,” Probst said. “Hopefully we will have it amended by the first of the year.”

Aldermen Tron McCoy and Jon Betts could not be reached for comment.

In the past, McCoy has been critical of cuts to the town’s staff.

In June, McCoy called a meeting for town employees at the convention center to discuss their rights in relation with the incoming administration, as Craft had reportedly met with some before he was sworn in and informed them they would no longer be employed by the city come July 1.

McCoy said, at the time, he had never seen wholesale terminations because of a change in administration.

Susan Windham, a pharmacy tech with Reeves Drug Store, said she has noticed one difference, for the better — the town is cleaner than it had been.

“They have cut back a lot of the bushes around town and have done some cleaning under the bridge,” she said. “They’ve cleaned up a lot of bad sites around town.

“They have not had a chance to make a big difference yet, but everyone seems to be liking the job (Craft) is doing.”