Ark Valley News - Kechi floats budget with no tax hike

Kechi floats budget with no tax hike
By Taylor Messick
Last Updated: July 18, 2019

On July 11, the Kechi City Council unanimously voted to set a public hearing on the proposed 2020 city budget.

The hearing will be held at 7 p.m. Aug. 8.

Expenditures for the city have increased in all funds since the drafting of the 2018 revised budget. That increase can be attributed to the city's steady dose of new development.

The city's assessed property valuation is projected to increase 6.67 percent, which allows the city to keep the property tax mill levy steady at 36.768 mills, the same as 2019. The valuation increase is higher than last year and even higher than what the city projected.

Capital improvement projects that are budgeted for 2020 include a remodel of the police station, the Kechi Road and Oliver intersection design, implementation of the water master plan, sewer rehabilitations and manhole inspections and upsizing of gas mains.

The council recently held a workshop to make a few last-minute changes. Two mills were re-allocated from the special street and highway fund to the capital reserve. The city looked at its upcoming street projects and found that it had more reconstruction projects on the horizon than repair projects. The special street and highway fund is for repairs and maintenance while the capital reserve funds street reconstruction projects.

Phone and computer workstation replacements were split between administration and police because the costs will benefit both departments. The city added $25,000 to a bucket truck request in the equipment reserve and added a request for electrical upgrades to city hall. The city added projected debt service payments, increased items for resale for the sewer utility fund and reduced the transfer from the gas reserve to the gas utility by $25,000 because the gas meter read systems came back lower than projected. The K-254 and Oliver drainage project was removed and will be addressed as part of the city's larger drainage project. The Huffman Drive project was moved from 2020 to 2021.

The land bank was entirely removed from the budget. The land bank must operate as a separate entity from the city in order to be legal. The land bank allows the city to buy properties without taxes being levied. A $25,000 transfer from the general fund to the land bank was authorized for 2020, bringing the total amount in the land bank to $100,000 just in case the city needs it.

Mayor John Speer was absent. There was a 30-minute executive session for non-elected personnel and a five-minute executive session for attorney client privilege.