Tax rate expected to rise 0.1 mill to help pay for park site, firetruck
If increase approved, average homeowner would pay about $34 more next year
Peters council is set to vote later this month on a 2018 budget that will include a 0.1-mill increase in the property tax rate, bringing the rate to 1.62 mills.
The average homeowner would see an increase of about $34 in township property taxes for the year, officials said, if council approves the increase at its Dec. 11 meeting. Property owners would pay $1.62 per $1,000 of assessed property value.
Township manager Paul Lauer presented the $22.6 million budget for 2018 at the council meeting on Monday.
“No one here is keen on it,” Councilwoman Monica Merrell said of the proposed tax increase, but she said with the amount of development in the township, including a new park, residents are probably anticipating a slight tax increase.
The increase, which will net more than $300,000 in revenue for the township, is “designed to do a couple of things,” Mr. Lauer said.
The increase will help pay off debt service on a bond issue the township took out to pay for the former Rolling Hills Country Club property as well as payments on a new aerial firetruck that will be delivered in February.
The township expects to hire an assistant planning director in 2018 and begin talks regarding the firefighters’ labor contract. Mr. Lauer added that he expects several retirements in key positions next year, which will have to be filled.
Included in the capital budget for 2018 is the roadway design for the former Rolling Hills Country Club site, now called Rolling Hills Park. About $250,000 is budgeted for the roadway design.
The road, an entrance to the property off East McMurray Road, will be used by the township and the school district, which plans to build a high school on its portion of the site.
Mr. Lauer said the township’s administration recently met with representatives from the state Department of Transportation to discuss the type of entrance to be used — either a roundabout or a signalized intersectionwith turning lanes.
PennDOT usually prefers roundabouts for its projects, Mr. Lauer said, but since the entrance is not a PennDOT project, “in our case they are indifferent” as to what type of entrance would be best.
The township sent out a request for proposals to do a study of the entrance to determine the benefits and costs of both a roundabout and a signalized intersection, he said.
In other matters, council voted to deviate from its regulations to allow the school district to submit the site plans for its new high school.
The township normally would require that the former country club site be subdivided prior to the school district submitting site plans to the township’s planning commission.
However, the township and school district determined that it is not in either of their interests to subdivide the property at this time.
The school district is working on submitting site plans for the new school to the township next month and anticipates the matter to be on the planning commission’s agenda in January, Mr. Lauer said.