Village Board Adopts 2015 Budget

The Village Board adopted the 2015 Village Budget after a public hearing on November 13, 2014. The utilities portion of the budget was subsequently approved at the meeting on December 11, 2014.
The 2015 budget is the result of hard work by staff and Village trustees, who reviewed the budget over the course of three workshops. The budget reflects the Village Board’s three main priorities: (1) Provide efficient, quality services; (2) Preserve and enhance property values; and (3) Enhance a sense of community. To download the 2015 budget document, click here.

Following are highlights from the budget:

• The tax levy increase is 0.2% over the prior year tax levy. Property owners can expect an increase of $1.00 per $100,000 in assessed value over the prior year the Village portion of the tax bill;
• The Village expects to receive the same amount of State shared revenue ($23,933) and recycling grant revenue ($8,641), but a 10% decrease in transportation aid due to reduced road construction in recent years;
• Overall revenue increase of 3.9%, largely due to transfers from Capital reserves ($71,341) for capital improvement projects;
• Planned capital expenditures of $85,750 for equipment replacements, $60,000 road construction, $12,500 for lighthouse improvements, $8,000 for general facilities;
• 3% increase ($8,103) in contracted Fire/EMS services from Racine Fire Department;
• Continued commitment to road maintenance activities to delay costly road reconstruction work, including $55,000 budgeted for slag sealing,
• $10,000 for crack-filling and $7,500 for patching;
• $12,000 is budgeted for legal analysis of the Village Code and recodification to address potential conflicts or inconsistencies and to conform with changes in State and Federal laws;
• Increase of $6,815 in snow removal wages to reflect recent increase in snow events and additional monies for equipment maintenance;
• $10,000 budgeted for Village Green Park planning and $5,000 for Village Board strategic planning.