Sanibel sets millage, same as last year
The Sanibel City Council on Monday unanimously agreed to set the millage rate at the same rate as it was last year during its meeting at City Hall, putting in place the first major component for the city’s 2017 budget.
The ad valorem millage rate was again set at 1.9139 for the $61,578.599 total budget for the city, continuing a slow, steady decrease in the millage over the past decade. The rolled back rate would be 1.823 mills.
The sewer debt service millage will be .1947, land acquisition will be .0720 and the rec center debt service is .1207 mills.
The vote was 4-0, with councilman Jim Jenkins absent.
The rate can be reduced, but not increased from here on out. A property owner will have to pay $20.99 for every $100,000 in property value.
The rate is thanks to a preliminary 5.48 percent increase in valuation of Sanibel’s taxable property value, now assessed at $4.763 billion.
This rate can also be attributed to proposed increases in fees for services that council members agree have been rolled back since the recession and never restored.
Judie Zimonra, city manager and Steven Chaipel, finance director, sought guidance from council regarding their draft budget, which council had a chance to think about since their June 7 meeting.
Much of what they suggested the council agreed with. Council discussed the restoration of rolled back fees in and Building and Planning departments, with an emphasis on activities happening at the recreation center.
“We have fees that we opened in a lower-fee environment. They have been surpassed for a long time,” Mayor Kevin Ruane said. “Tourists and residents have to pay their share of services. We need to pay for the rec center.”
Ruane also agreed with the budget’s suggestion to look at non-residential use beach parking stickers and the possibility of an increase there.
Ruane also suggested looking at reorganizing the planning and building departments and other possible areas where there is duplication of jobs. Council was in agreement.
“We always ask in business why do we do things a certain way. The answer is always because it’s how we’ve always done it,” councilman Marty Harrity said. “It’s nice to be able to step back and look at another way to do things and make it better.”
Staff was directed by council to prepare a chart with options on how to restore fees to the city. The motion was passed unanimously.
From here, by Aug. 4, finance will advise the property appraiser of the proposed millage rates; rolled-back rate and date, time and place of first public hearing.
The property appraiser will mail notices of proposed property taxes and advertises the date, time and place of the first public hearing by Aug. 24.
Saturday, Sept. 10, at 9 a.m. at City Hall, where the tentative millage and budget will be adopted.
A second hearing will be Tuesday, Sept. 20 at 5:01 p.m., where the millage and budget will be made final.
In other business, Ruane said he would not attend the next council meeting on August 2, for a personal matter. The council also appointed Bill Fellows to the board of trustees of the general employee’s retirement plan.
They also accepted the resignation of Police Chief Bill Tomlinson from the city’s Municipal Police Officers Trust Fund Board of Directors.
Votes on all matters were unanimous.