After a county-wide real estate revaluation that increased property values by almost 50 percent or more, Wake Forest Town Manager Kip Padgett is recommending a new tax rate of $0.42, a rate above the revenue neutral tax rate of $0.3460. He unveiled the plan Tuesday night, May 7, during the town board’s work session.
Padgett’s proposed $128,668,100 budget for the 2024-2025 fiscal year includes 13 new staff positions, seven of them for the Wake Forest Police Department. There were no increases in the town’s health insurance premiums for the sixth year, but there were mandated increases in the two retirement funds for town employees.
In Padgett’s full three-page letter to the town commissioners, he says the reason for the change from the revenue-neutral rate to the $0.42 is because, in a reassessment year he must add to the revenue-neutral rate of $0.3460 the following: Fire station 6 and public safety warehouse construction, debt service for the 2022 bond referendum, public safety capital equipment (fire engines), annual cost for 15 new firefighters (in recruit class), affordable housing and increased operational costs (the costs for many items have increased sharply).
There will be a public hearing about the proposed budget on Tuesday, May 21, the town board’s action meeting; there will be a work session for the town board about the proposed budget on Tuesday, June 4; and the plan is for the town commissioners to approve a budget with any changes on June 18 at their action meeting.
The new positions will cost $825,000 in 2024-2025, debt service will cost $11.1 million ($3.2 million of which is for future debt related to voter approved bonds in 2022 and fire station 6 on Wait Avenue). The town also needs to purchase three fire engines — one for the new station and two to replace aging engines needed within two years. Padgett said the engines cost an estimated $980,000 each and take almost two years to build.
The town has hired a design-build firm for the new fire station and training center on the east side of town. Equipment and staff will be addressed in the 2026 budget when Padgett anticipates adding 15 fire fighters. The town will also build a warehouse for the police department.
The other fees Wake Forest homeowners will see on their tax bill are $23 for the residential solid waste fee, $0.14 for the downtown district tax fee, and $30 for the vehicle fee. The town established a new Stormwater Utility last year with three tiers of rates that will be billed annually to all property owners beginning in July of 2024.
A copy of the budget is available in the first-floor lobby of the Wake Forest Town Hall on Brooks Street.
There will be future information about the budget in the Gazette.
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4 Responses
YIKES!
For residents in Wake Forest, most will likely see their tax bills INCREASE by 25% or so. Take your recent property revaluation (divide by 100) and run the numbers with the proposed Wake Forest rate of .42 and the Wake County rate .5105, plus the new Wake Forest storm water fee and you’ll see how much MORE you will be paying. Yes, the “rates” dropped (marketing talk), however both the county and town have taken the opportunity to significantly go over the revenue neutral rates. I crunched my numbers and I’ll be paying an additional $963 in property taxes and “fees” year over year. Our leaders need to be better stewards of our tax dollars.
Good thing we have all this growth to keep tax rates flat. How about an impact fee on all the apartments and condominiums, increased development fees, and a surcharge on initial build outs to support new fire and police services. If we’re going to grow, let those profiting from the growth cover their share of the bill for “progress”. Goodness gracious, what a mess town government has created.
We just increased our fire impact fee. I think we almost doubled it for a single family detached dwelling. I cannot remember the exact figure. Mrs. Pelosi may remember & can chime in.
If there is a budget line item ADD for a new fire station and fire trucks in the general fund, then the fire protection facility fees (impact fee) charged on new construction in the last 15+ years have apparently failed to accumulate funds to meet costs that are growth driven. The fees were recently increased based on the recommendation of the consulting firm Raftelis. Each time there is a impact fee study, the fee goes up, then down, then up. Per the Gazette, in 2016 the Fire Chief expressed concern that the lowering of the fees (example – new construction single family fee went down from $592 to $454) by the Board of Commissioners would not generate sufficient funds for station # 6 and a fire truck. Now part of the burden, maybe most, shifts to all taxpayers. More clarity and transparency in the collection of, and the use of, the fire protection facility fee is needed.