KATIE SCHMITT - Daily Herald | Posted: Wednesday, May 31, 2006 11:00 pm
There's no property tax increase in Spanish Fork's proposed budget, but there's no promised tax decrease, either.
Ten years ago, Spanish Fork residents were told their property taxes would be lowered once the city paid for a new fire station. Now a decade later, the city council is considering keeping the rates up to cover costs of a new public safety building for police and the 4th District Court.
The council discussed the property tax issue Tuesday night during a special city council meeting on the fiscal year 2007 budget.
Spanish Fork City Manager David Oyler said the public safety building would cost approximately $14 million.
City officials hope to reduce the amount they would have to bond for by using $2 million to $3 million from the city's reserve pool. And they're considering making bond payments using money from three sources.
Oyler said the state would pay for the court part of the building, and the rest would come from money that residents pay for electricity and the property taxes that were originally increased to pay for the fire station.
No decisions were made Tuesday night, and residents will have a chance to tell the council what they think about the budget at a meeting June 6.
Another budget item residents could comment on is the possible purchase of new meters to measure electricity, water and pressurized irrigation.
"It used to be that we would turn on all the street lights and run the lines to see which ones worked and which ones needed to be fixed," said Jeff Foster, electric superintendent. "We can't do that now."
He said his division has considered four or five different kinds of meters to replace the current ones, but more discussion needs to happen to determine which kind would fit in the budget and fill the needs of Spanish Fork. The current system requires workers to hand read each meter, but Foster said they are looking for a system that is more interactive.
"For most systems, we would have to put meters at each house," Foster said. "This can let us be more proactive."
Foster said a newer system would help his division know of a problem even before a customer calls to tell them the electricity is off. The current system isn't as reliable as some of the newer systems, which Foster said get better all the time.
"It isn't just meter reading," said John Bowcut, information system director. "It's managing resources."
The city council will make final decisions on the budget at its meeting on June 20.
This story appeared in The Daily Herald on page B10.