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Council considers 1 percent property tax hike
11/5/2014 11:44:27 AM
By Craig Howard
Splash Contributor
Each autumn, the Liberty Lake City Council begins the obligatory task of approving a budget for the upcoming year. Before applying its stamp of endorsement, the governing board must also determine how the property tax rate will affect the final numbers.
Over the years, the math has varied, with annexations and the annual decision of whether to raise the property tax the 1 percent allowed by law all impacting the rates. The economy has played a role, too. In 2011, with sales tax revenue impacted by the nationwide recession, the city opted to access the property tax capacity it had "banked" in previous years, upping the rate by 3.10 percent. The hike represented the only year from 2009 to 2014 that the city did not leave the rate alone.
Mayor Steve Peterson's preliminary budget for 2015 includes a 1 percent property tax increase, meaning a home assessed at $250,000 would pay an additional $4 next year.
At Tuesday's council meeting, those around the dais appeared to be leaning toward the slight upturn.
"I'm in favor of it," said Council Member Dan Dunne. "I believe it is fair and would serve the city well."
Council Member Odin Langford said he would support the increase, noting that the city has historically approached property tax from a conservative angle while providing residents with an abundance of capital projects and reliable services.
"This is a great deal," Langford said.
While Liberty Lake's property tax rate has not ballooned significantly in the past decade, the same cannot be said for the city's assessed property value. In 2003, the estimated worth of property in municipal limits stood at more than $481 million. In 2014, that number increased to more than $1.1 billion, with nearly $1.2 billion projected for 2015.
Even with a 1 percent addition in 2015, Liberty Lake would boast one of the lowest property tax rates in the region at $1.7598 per $1,000 of assessed value. By comparison, the rate in the city of Spokane Valley sits at $2.0448. Millwood charges $2.10 while Spokane comes in highest at $3.03.
"We provide a significant level of service but our levy rate is lower than all these other cities," Finance Director R.J. Stevenson told council on Tuesday.
Council must make a decision on any shifts to the property tax rate at its Nov. 18 meeting in order for a change to take effect in 2015.
Waste management transition
In the other major discussion on Nov. 4, council heard from representatives of Waste Management Inc. regarding the transition in citywide waste collection and disposal services that will take place on Nov. 17.
While Waste Management trucks will still collect trash and recycling on Mondays, the timing of the routes will change, according to Tami Yager, public sector manager for Waste Management. Yager said residents should make sure to move their garbage and recycling bins to the curb on Sunday night or by 6 a.m. on Monday morning in order to ensure collection.
Billing will remain on a quarterly schedule, although clients set up on auto pay will need to change their account numbers, Yager said. She added that the company is sending out letters to customers in Liberty Lake to alert residents of any necessary changes.
Since the city is taking over the facilitation of waste management, the process will involve closing out accounts that have been under the umbrella of state regulations to this point, Yager said. The other significant change involves solid waste from Liberty Lake being hauled to the newly renovated transfer station operated by Sunshine Disposal and Recycling on University Road just north of Interstate 90.
On Tuesday, council voted in support of Peterson signing a waste collection service agreement with Sunshine Disposal while approving the first amendment to the solid waste collection agreement with Waste Management and authorizing the mayor to sign the amendment.
While Waste Management and Sunshine Disposal and Recycling will collaborate on the collection and disposal of residential waste, the companies will continue to compete against each other on the commercial side of collection in Liberty Lake. So far, the status quo appears to be in order.
"We have yet to receive a single call from a business in Liberty Lake," said City Administrator Katy Allen.
In other city news:
• Steve Skipworth, a commissioner with the Liberty Lake Sewer and Water District, told council on Tuesday that the district had received word from Whitewater Creek, the Post Falls-based development company, that it was withdrawing its proposal to add 700 ground source heat pumps to the Lakemore development in the eastern part of the city. In September, LLSWD took over lead agency status from the city in reviewing Whitewater Creek's application and launching an environmental impact study. The district had expressed concern about the project's potential impact on the Spokane Valley/Rathdrum Prairie Aquifer. "The developer is now looking at other options," Skipworth said.
• Mayor Peterson presented a proclamation to Ron Schoenberger, husband of the late Shirley Schoenberger, officially naming a portion of the municipal trail system to the east of the Trailhead at Liberty Lake Golf Course "Shirley's Trail." As one of the founding members of the Liberty Lake Trails Committee in 1995 that initiated the construction of pathways throughout the community, Shirley had campaigned for a trail down the hill from the golf course. A plaque honoring Shirley will be attached to a bench along the trail.
• Terri Capozzo with the local branch of the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network spoke to council following a proclamation designating November as Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month. Capozzo lost her husband to the disease after a two-year battle. She commended the city for "doing the critical work of making the public aware of the disease" and "providing most of all, hope."
• The finance committee reported that, through October, the city has already reached 107 percent of its projected sales tax revenue for 2014.
• Allen reported on a recent meeting with representatives of the Central Valley School District involving the possibility of a new elementary school near the site of the recently constructed Liberty Lake Ballfields. She said CVSD Superintendent Ben Small clarified that any construction would not jeopardize the fields.
• Allen told council that the addition of a restroom and storage facility at the ballfield site would run an estimated $245,000. The original price, which only included a restroom, was projected at $160,000.
• The next City Council meeting will take place at 7 p.m. Nov. 18 at City Hall.
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