Decatur City Manager Ryan McCrady discusses Decatur’s tax levy in this video.
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Copyright © 2012 All Rights Reserved
Copyright © 2012 All Rights Reserved
My taxes already just went up. My house payment just increased $200 per month now they announce another tax increase is coming. Why all of a sudden did the value of my house increase? I was going to open a business but it looks like I will go to one of the neighboring towns to live and operate the business which would primarily be funded from Decatur residents. Its no wonder people have been moving to other smaller towns. I would say shut down the municipal band or funded it through donations. I guess the Library needs to be addressed as to what cuts would happen there. I wonder what % of people actually use the library anymore due to everything being available online. I already don’t get services such as snow removal where I live. I just can’t see any reason to pay the high taxes. I think they should cut the tax from the Park District in half and give it to the City coffers. Why would we as a town being in such financial hardship even think about building up the lake front? Jobs are no where to be found so the chance of new residents coming are not good.
I have been taking my kids to the library with me since they were born. They are now both adults and still go. We are there on a weekly basis. Nothing will replace having a book in your hands, reading a book on line wouldn’t come close. More parents need to take their kids to the library, maybe it would cut back on illiteracy. There are always people in the library. It is one of the services this city provides which I actually think is worth it.
As far as the lake front project. It was in the paper that just the design would cost $249,000. – from what I gather this will be split between the city and the park district. Can either really afford this? That money could be better spent else where. What about the funding of the airport and golf courses. I would bet more people use the library than either one of these.
I agree the municipal band could be funded from donations.
Library, Your probably right on the Library usage, I have no idea on how to cut the money from there. The Park District takes a majority of our taxes now. I just have to keep reminding my self that its not the working man struggling to stay afloat that runs this town, State, or even Country its the upper %10 that run it and benefit the most from the political decisions. To say the working man is screwed is an understatement.
The Park District is discussing upping their levy on property taxes. I think they get enough and should learn to operate within their means. After all the rest of us working folks do. When we make less money we make do with less, why should they be any different. Why they would even think of preceding with this lakefront thing at this time is beyond me. They think since the pool and golf course are closed they have free rein to do what they want with the land. We paid for it with our tax money, it is not theirs. I agree the upper 10% run everything and I am getting just a little bit sick of it. If you speak out they try to make you out as a troublemaker or nut.
Doug, don’t go!!! Decatur needs people just like you and your wife. But I can understand your anger. A $200 a month increase? Holy Cow! Our property taxes have increased too. We were paying around $1,200/year for several years and now it’s up to around $1,800. For a lot of people, that’s still cheap compared to what they’re paying but that’s quite a jump. Granted we’ve made lots of improvements to the house since we’ve moved in but I’ve heard many stories of assessment being artificially high across the city.
It looks like the mayor is wanting a 7.5% increase in the tax levy and a 10% reduction to the library fund. That wouldn’t hurt so much if the county hadn’t just raised their rate by 4.3% (which I think was completely unnecessary and unwise); the school district is going to ask for an increase and I guess the park district too. And we’re going to have to may more for our health insurance if the health reforms go through. Where do they think we’re going to come up with all this money? Hello, do they not read the newspaper?
Solutions that I’d like to see implemented to help reduce taxpayers cost:
a.) require city personnel who live out of town pay a portion of their salary towards their retirement. Right now, it’s funded through our property taxes.
b.) let the duties of the Decatur Township assessor be absorbed by the county.
c.) more intergovernmental cooperation: city, townships, school districts, park district(s) should have to meet with each other once in a while and be on the same page.
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I’ll be in the minority here on the lakefront development. I think, if it’s done properly and with primarily private funds, it could be a revenue generator for the city. I would like to see the golf course reopened and a new aquatic center built.
And I think it was a mistake not to go ahead with the Lincoln Homestead plans last year. That could have been a revenue stream for many years to come and now we have nothing. Very shortsighted decision. They should have dealt with the tax levy last year.
I agree Kris if they get Private funding I don’t think that hurts everyone like a tax increase. It may cause some of the surrounding houses and businesses to pay an increse if it adds to the value of their property. The problem is curreently property is going down in value not up. Why would they cut the actual people that do the services? I would get rid of some Lawyers, Asst. Mgrs, cut pay in Accounting, cut the City Mgr. salary, fire who ever is getting paid to bring jobs to this town because with or with out them we still have no jobs coming so why pay them.
Kris
I don’t have the final say anyway so I’m sure we will be here for a bunch more years anyway. Grandchilderen make it hard to leave LOL!
I don’t get how our assessments are going up when real property values are going down or remaining flat. Decatur isn’t exactly the most desirable place to flock to right now considering our job market. Even the mayor has protested his property tax assessment because it was way off from what anyone could reasonably expect it to sell for. Doug, go down to the county and protest the assessment if you think it’s too high. My dad’s neighbor had to do that when his taxes nearly doubled in one year. And he was in his 80′s and no improvements had been made to his house at all since he built in in the early 1970′s. It might help and it might not but go down and talk to them. A $200/month increase seems REALLY out of line to me, unless you’ve added a 2,000 square feet addition I don’t know about.
And to me everyone in city management and the council is responsible for job growth. The city council members have volunteered to take pay cuts – though they barely make enough to pay for their gasoline to drive to the meetings. I haven’t heard that upper management is willing to do the same thing.
Yeah, grandchildren have a way of doing that! My parents were heartbroken when my oldest brother moved to Colorado with the grandchildren. The youngest grandchild was only a month old when they left. My parents were thrilled when they moved back!
I just double checked with Christy its actually closer to $300 than $200. So yes I will be visiting the the assessment office. I have no idea why it would go up so much its crazy.
I know council would take a cut, and I agree I have not heard any upper MGT. sacrificing other than the buy outs. The problems have had to be going on for sometime now which leads me to belive that our former City Mgr. Sucked! I know RM is a standup guy, I just hope he is wrong about having to raise our taxes.
I think our taxes being raised is a done deal. 7.5% seems to be the number, for this year anyway. Laying off city workers is coming down the pipe too. I just hope it isn’t snow plow workers because it takes three days to get my street plowed with the staff levels now. The thing is, what about next year? Will this increase do anything about future shortfalls?
Our last city council was far more entertaining to watch and write about but obviously too caught up in personal infighting and personality clashes to get anything done. Now we’re paying for it – really paying for it out of our pockets.
I hope you can get your taxes lowered! They seem excessive to say the least.
I would love to have our street done in a 3 day period LOL. So now the unions will be the blame for everything and Obama of course, he is the real reason we are like this LOL. Maybe the City will lock the unions out and we could have all the people that don’t have to pay parking tickets work off their debt. This really isn’t a council problem that’s why we have the City Mgr. It looks like we have been playing the numbers game and it finally caught up with us. I firmly believe this CM is good but he isn’t a miracle worker. I’m sure the former Mayor will blame everything on Caulkins on the Byers show. You will have to let me know what he says because my radio doesn’t get that channel.
Well, the council didn’t really address the issue last year. The only difference was we had the Looking for Lincoln funds, and I think some money taken out of the general fund, to make up the difference. Now the Lincoln funds are gone (and all we got were some signs and goofy looking sculptures) and the general funds aren’t doing so great either. But I don’t think anyone foresaw how deep, long lasting and bad this recession was going to be for the nation and for us right here in Decatur.
The problem with our taxing system is that it only works if the economy is humming along. When times get tough we get the double whammy of higher taxes to make up the difference- right when it hurts the most.
Ideally Decatur would have a diverse workforce and not so reliant upon a handful of employers to keep us afloat. We can’t just rely on ADM, Cat, DMH and St. Mary’s forever. Cat could pick up and leave any day. ADM could move their corporate offices to Chicago. Then we would be totally screwed!
That’s why I push for development at the lake, downtown, neighborhood improvements and tourism. We need business that’s going to stay here and can’t be outsourced. Nobody can take away Lincoln’s historic ties to Decatur. Our lake isn’t going anywhere – as long as we keep it dredged. Nobody can take away our downtown. Millikin and Richland are here to stay and I’d love to see them both continue to expand. I want Decatur to hold the cards to our future and not be beggars to heartless corporations that don’t give a hoot about us.
And I agree: It’s Obama’s fault!
And we might be getting snow this week. I better make sure I have a 3 day supply of food in the house. LOL I should have bought a 4×4 truck. We’ve had to have my dad come rescue us in the past since he has the truck to get through deep snow. My little Vibe doesn’t quite cut it in snow over 6 inches and Rick’s truck is a sled. He about flipped it over in the neighbors ditch a couple years ago after it got stuck.
I think more people should be calling and writing the park district and get them to change when they have their meetings. They say it is at noon because it is easier on the staff, if part of the job is being at those meetings then they show up whenever it is. The park district also said no one showed up. City staff show up in the evenings so why can’t the park district staff. It is only twice a month. It needs to be insisted upon, and they would have to change it.
*The park district also said no one showed up. City staff show up in the evenings ….*
I meant the public didn’t show up, not the staff.