Every year at the November village board meeting the board members discuss and approve the 2017 budget. The same took place last night. Hopefully all will be happy with the constraints of the Richfield Village Board. Numerous residents attended the budget hearings in October, open to the public, and let their voices be heard.
Tonight the Board will be considering its 2017 Village Budget, the culmination of several months of work by Administrative Staff, the Village Board, and our residents who chose to participate in the 7th Annual Community Budget Workshop. This Budget is yet another step forward for the Village in maintaining its financial solvency by saving for future capital purchases, continued exploration in the arena of forming intergovernmental agreements with surrounding taxing jurisdictions, maintaining existing service levels, and in some instances, improving them. For the Village's third year in a row, we have seen continued growth in our residential population with 47 new home starts in 2016. In 2015, the Village had 44 new home starts in the community. This new home growth has yielded a "Net New Construction" amount of $22,547,500, which allows us to collect an additional $37,351 in property taxes. This amount equates to a 1.49% increase over last year. In Washington County, only the Village of Germantown had more equalized value growth than Richfield. The Village of Germantown's "Net New Construction" according to the Wisconsin Department of Revenue was $34,775,500. The next closest community was the City of West Bend at $16,378,800. Much, if not all, of the Village's growth in this regard is due to single family residential homes whereas in other communities it is likely a combination of commercial, manufacturing, and residential growth (single/multi-family).
Net New Construction History
2013 2014 2015 2016
0.72% 1.16% 1.28% 1.49%
Mill Rate History
2014 2015 2016 2017
$1.67 $1.67 $1.66 $1.67
While it is true that the Village Board will be considering a tax increase with this year's Budget, the literal amount that it will be increased is the amount difference between $1.6628 and $1.6671 per thousand ($1.66 v. $1.67). The proposed Mill Rate or the taxable rate expressed on a per thousand basis of assessed value would revert back to 2015 and 2014 levels. In terms of dollars and cents, on the average homeowner in the Village of Richfield with a $288,500 home, the amount in the Village's portion of the tax bill their property taxes will increase by is a relatively nominal amount of $2.88, total. This is an increase of 0.26%, a little more than one-quarter of one percent.
Without utilizing Governor Walker's 'Tool' for municipalities to account for growth in the community, the services the Village provides cannot be equitably distributed amongst all property owners. Many service requirements come along with the demands of a growing residential population. By utilizing Governor Walker's 'Net New Construction' provision, we ensure the new growth our community continues to experience and the services they undoubtedly utilize are not diluted or subsidized by our existing tax base.
In 2017, the Village is scheduled to make the following Capital Expenditures for purchase
-Server & Battery Backup - $10,000
-Heritage Park Swing set Feature - $6,000
-Roadway Improvement 2017 — Friess Lake Road - $205,154
-Roadway Improvement 2017 — Scenic Road - $476,960
TOTAL - $698,114
Source: November Village Board Packet chick here if you wish additional budget details.
Net New Construction History
2013 2014 2015 2016
0.72% 1.16% 1.28% 1.49%
Mill Rate History
2014 2015 2016 2017
$1.67 $1.67 $1.66 $1.67
While it is true that the Village Board will be considering a tax increase with this year's Budget, the literal amount that it will be increased is the amount difference between $1.6628 and $1.6671 per thousand ($1.66 v. $1.67). The proposed Mill Rate or the taxable rate expressed on a per thousand basis of assessed value would revert back to 2015 and 2014 levels. In terms of dollars and cents, on the average homeowner in the Village of Richfield with a $288,500 home, the amount in the Village's portion of the tax bill their property taxes will increase by is a relatively nominal amount of $2.88, total. This is an increase of 0.26%, a little more than one-quarter of one percent.
Without utilizing Governor Walker's 'Tool' for municipalities to account for growth in the community, the services the Village provides cannot be equitably distributed amongst all property owners. Many service requirements come along with the demands of a growing residential population. By utilizing Governor Walker's 'Net New Construction' provision, we ensure the new growth our community continues to experience and the services they undoubtedly utilize are not diluted or subsidized by our existing tax base.
In 2017, the Village is scheduled to make the following Capital Expenditures for purchase
-Server & Battery Backup - $10,000
-Heritage Park Swing set Feature - $6,000
-Roadway Improvement 2017 — Friess Lake Road - $205,154
-Roadway Improvement 2017 — Scenic Road - $476,960
TOTAL - $698,114
Source: November Village Board Packet chick here if you wish additional budget details.
RSS Feed
