Property taxes in the city of Fort Myers are going up as much as 10%.
The town council agreed to raise the tax rate to 7.3112 mils next year.
As budget deliberations and public hearings proceed council could lower the rate. Once they set the rate at their August 3 meeting it cannot be raised.
“You’ll see pretty quickly that this looks different from past years,” City Manager Marty Lawing said at a July 28 budget workshop.
A new state law says the 10% increase requires a two-thirds vote by the council. Any more of an increase would require a unanimous vote.
Lots of growth, but existing property values sag
That’s because property values in the city inched up by 0.45%. The city saw over a quarter-billion dollars in new construction during the last fiscal year, but the value of existing property dropped by almost $200 million.
The city tax base is just more than $14 billion.
“The millage was reduced over the past 10 years,” city budget director Christine Tenney told council members. “We had great growth in the tax base, and we did the right thing.”
Other SWF cities paying lower rates, but aging Ft. Myers needs money
Councilman Liston Bochette pointed out other southwest Florida cities have property tax rates far lower, in many cases less than half the Fort Myers rate.
“Cape Coral’s at 5.14,” he said. “Sanibel’s at 2.33. North Port is 3.7. Naples is 1.2. Punta Gorda is 3.8. Sarasota is 3.2.”
“So we’re not just doubling,” he said. “We’re exceeding double. People want to pick a city they look at taxes. We want to be that shiny spot on the west coast of Florida.”
But there are other factors.
“You have to look at the property values,” Councilwoman Teresa Watkins-Brown said.
Councilwoman Darla Bonk said she has a business in Cape Coral.
“And we’re assessed a lot,” she said. “The millage rate does not tell that whole story.”
Mayor Kevin Anderson said the difference is that Fort Myers is much older than the other cities, as is the city’s infrastructure.
“We are the oldest city in southwest Florida,” he said. “Because of that we do have aging infrastructure and a lot of different needs that other communities don’t have.”
Fort Myers was founded in 1885. Some of the sewer lines the city is responsible for are over 100 years old. The city is under a Consent Order from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, and has spent literally hundreds of millions on upgrades.
Sales tax boost could help, but city doesn’t control
Bochette also returned to a favorite subject – the sales tax. That rate is set by county commissioners, who briefly considered a half-cent increase earlier this year but dropped the idea in the face of public opposition.
“The county has to do it,” Tenney said. “And the voters have to approve.”
The difference could mean $18 million to the city, Tenney said.
Millage rate expected set at
The council will set the millage rate of 7.3112 at their August 3 meeting. Also on that agenda will be a bond package drawing against the General Obligation bonds city voters approved for park land buying and construction in 2024.
The $45 million in bonds will go to pay for two land buys totaling not quite $8 million. Work is also to be done at Billy Bowlegs Rec Facility, Calusa Nature Center, Cityview Park, Dunbar Park, Fort Myers Middle School, the Golfview Pool, Shady Oaks and Tarpon Park.
It will be paid back by an additional property tax – separate since it was voted – of .169 mils.
The city millage rate was 8.776 mils in 2015. It came down every year since then, and is currently at 6.5 mils.
A mil is one dollar for every $1,000 of taxable value.
Other factors driving the city budget include a new contract that raises the pay for city police, which will add $2.7 million. Negotiations are underway with the firefighters union as well.
The city could also look at increases to non-property tax assessments such as the $218 annual fire assessment, the stormwater assessment and the solid waste assessment.
Council discussed an increase of as much as 30% to the fire assessment, which currently funds 41% of the fire and rescue budget.
No increases are recommended for the other two assessments, though the city’s stormwater master plan is expected to be complete later this year and it could lead to an increase.
The stormwater assessment is currently $2.16 for what’s called a Standard Impervious Unit, a calculation that produces a $129.60 payment on a 2,500-square-foot single-family home.
The solid waste (garbage pick-up) assessment is currently $240.55. It is designed to cover the city’s cost, and is not expected to increase.
All of those assessment rates will be set August 3, with public hearings in September.
Max rate to be set August 3 – other assessments in September
Council will set the maximum property tax rate at its August 3 meeting. Budget hearings – including discussion of the non-property tax assessments – will take place in September.
Florida has yet to release projections for revenues such as sales taxes and gas taxes, of which the city receives a share. That information is expected to be released within a few weeks.
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Charlie Whitehead covers Lee County and Fort Myers. Reach him at cwhitehead@gannett.com
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This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Fort Myers looking at 10% property tax hike
Reporting by Charlie Whitehead, Fort Myers News-Press & Naples Daily News / Fort Myers News-Press
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By Charlie Whitehead, Fort Myers News-Press & Naples Daily News | USA TODAY Network
