ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — When leaders in the Town of Orchard Park first released their proposed tentative budget for next year, it included a 12 percent tax increase for property owners.
At a forum Tuesday night, the Town of Orchard Park revealed it wants to reduce the proposed 12 percent tax increase in the tentative budget, which would have cost the owner of a $250,000 home in the town about $150 more a year in taxes, to 3.27 percent.
“It's always much higher than the final budget will be," says Town of Orchard Park Supervisor Patrick Keem. "Last year, it was over 10 percent, and we reduced it at least four percent. We've been studying our restructured police department, and there's a lot of savings there, and these things, and now we're working with highway, too, trying to restructure them make them more efficient and effective for our taxpayers."
The main reason for an increase at all is the new Community Activity Center opening early next year. Voters approved building the new $21 million center in 2016. Bob Fortenbaugh has lived in the town his whole life, and he says the new center has been a long time coming.
"For those of us who've been here a long time, I mean, there were proposals back in the 70s for a community center like this, so to see it finally be built is pretty exciting," says Fortenbaugh.
The operating costs and debt payments for the center account for almost $900,000 of the $1.6 million in proposed increases, but the town revealed those costs will be offset by an estimated $465,000 in revenue generated by both the center and town fees and permits.
Also included in the tax increase are raises. Police officers are getting raises for the first time in years.
"We have a police contract that we have to pay for, and we have a highway contract," Keem said. "Plus, other contracts all four union contracts actually that, but two were new contracts that we have to fund, and the people in those departments didn't get raises for years, so we're kind of catching up so to speak."
The final budget will be voted on and approved next month. There is another tax forum 9:30 a.m. Saturday at the Municipal Center.