Altoona passes spending increase, small levy hike

Friday, November 13, 2015
Eric Lindquist, Leader-Telegram

ALTOONA - The Altoona City Council approved a 2016 budget Thursday night that increases spending by 10.58 percent but only raises the amount to be collected in property taxes by just over 1 percent.

The 2016 budget calls for total spending of $7.87 million, up from $7.12 million this year. The city's tax levy would rise from from $2.4 million to $2.43 million.

"The big story is probably that this is not a balanced budget. We're anticipating spending about $348,974 from reserves," said city Administrator Mike Golat, attributing the additional spending plus a planned $6.8 million of new borrowing to development and maintenance costs for the northwest quadrant of the city's River Prairie development.

"We want to finish that project. The focus next year is going to be on that public park space," Golat said.

He pointed out that the city also budgeted for spending from reserves the past two years but didn't end up doing it when revenues exceeded expectations. 

With no public comment at the public hearing portion of Thursday's City Council meeting, the panel unanimously approved the spending plan that had emerged from previous budget committee discussions.

"I think the citizens of Altoona can sleep easy tonight," Mayor Jack Blackburn said. "We've been at this for several months, and I think this is a good budget."

Under the new budget, Altoona's 2016 tax rate will be $6.35 per $1,000 of equalized value, up 1.28 percent from $6.27 this year.

That means the city's share of property taxes on a $150,000 house would be $952.50 next year, up $12 from 2015.

The largest components of the 2016 budget are: public safety, down 1.63 percent to $2.17 million; public works, up 9.57 percent to $1.97 million; debt service, up 19.49 percent to $1.65 million; and recreation and education, up 18.7 percent to $1.3 million.

The budget includes an additional $50,000 for street and trail maintenance projects next year, plus funding to hire a city planner and a management analyst. It calls for no rate increase for the water, sewer or storm water utility budgets.

In other action, the council heard a presentation from Phil Johnson of Eau Claire-based Ayres Associates and John Hawkinson of Jackson-based Cost of Wisconsin about a possible artificial stream feature in the public park section of River Prairie's northwest quadrant.

The proposed stream, supplied by the city's water utility and expected to operate nearly six months a year, would be about 800 feet long and cost an estimated $1 million. 

Plans call for it to include islands, sand bars, boulders, logs and indigenous plantings to make it look as natural as possible, Hawkinson said.

"We hope this feature will be the reason a lot of people come down to this park," Johnson said.

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