The Clearwater City Council Monday approved the 2018 preliminary levy at $1,051,850, which represents a 5.20% increase over the 2017 levy of $999,852.
The general fund will see a 1.94% decrease from $515,529 to $505,537.
The parks fund will also be decreased from $51,156 to $48,764 as will debt service for the 2015 general obligations bonds, from $106,444 to $104,765.
The fire protection fund is proposed to increase from $85,316 to $91,770. The city is also increasing its capital levy from $150,000 to $170,000.
Based on a projected 5.05% home value increase, the levy would increase annual taxes on a residential homestead property valued at $78,100 by $15 in 2018. A median price home ($154,300) would see a $41 increase. Taxes on a commercial property valued at $500,000 would fall $29.
Before voting to adopt the preliminary levy, the council discussed ways to reduce the numbers before the final levy is approved in December.
Councilman Richard Petty suggested cutting back on the EDA Growth Incentive Program, which funds WAC and SAC fees for four new homes a year.
“I don’t think we’re incentivizing anyone to come here because of the fact we have it,” he said. “I don’t know of too many who have used it to come to Clearwater.”
“If you wanted to cut some (dollars) off for the final levy, that would be a good place to start,” said Administrator Kevin Kress.
The program has been allocated $22,800 for 2018.
Kress said another option would be to look at some of the capital improvement items to see if anything isn’t necessary.
The council was originally looking to keep any increase at three percent or lower, but they didn’t have the final police protection contract numbers when they started their budget meetings.
“It would have been 4.7% instead of 5.2%,” said Kress.
Cutting funding for the EDA Growth Incentive Program would reduce the levy 2.9%, and the levy could be reduced an additional one percent for every $10,000 cut.
Kress said they will continue looking at ways to reduce the levy.
