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Stafford proposes tax hike

Proposed Stafford budget shows real estate tax rate increase of almost 20 cents

By Kafia Hosh

Date published: 3/19/2008

In an effort to offset a potential budget shortfall of about $30 million, Stafford County Administrator Anthony Romanello is proposing a real estate tax rate increase of almost 20 cents.

So even with declining real estate values, Stafford homeowners could see higher tax bills this June.

Romanello presented the 2009 proposed budget to the Board of Supervisors yesterday. He suggested raising the real estate tax rate from 70 cents per $100 of assessed value to 89.8 cents, an increase of about 28 percent.

With that increase, the average homeowner would pay an extra $206 on his tax bill each year.

A penny on the tax rate in Stafford generates about $1.5 million.

The county is already facing about a $6.4 million shortfall this year, largely due to declining sales taxes, recordation, development and the housing-market slump. The most recent budget projections put the deficit at about $13.5 million.

However, county departments slashed their spending by 7 percent, helping save about $6 million.

The School Board also is cutting expenditures by about $1.5 million.

The tax-rate increase is necessary to meet the proposed 2009 budget, according to county officials. If the rate remains unchanged, Stafford officials are projecting a $15 million drop in revenue and about a $9 million increase in expenses. Couple this with the current $6.4 million shortfall and Stafford would begin the next fiscal year about $31 million in the hole.

"That's the gap we have to close to balance this budget," Romanello said in an interview before the proposal presentation.

The only projected revenue increase next year is the personal property tax, if the sale of new cars (which bring in higher tax revenue) are not deterred by the sluggish economy and soaring gas prices.

"It's probably been the largest revenue that's been insulated so far from the economic environment," Romanello said.

The county will still receive some funding to get its projects going next year. Stafford is getting about $2.8 million, mostly state grants, which will help fund various agencies such as social services and law enforcement.

The Board of Supervisors voted 5-2 last night to reclassify 489 acres in the courthouse area now zoned for industrial and agricultural use to an office commercial zone. Supervisors originally considered rezoning the area to an urban commercial classification. However, the office commercial zone allows for some light retail uses, but is mostly tailored for premier office space that could attract more white-collar jobs. Several business owners and officials of the industrial entities along Wyche Road and Venture Drive spoke out against the rezoning. They encouraged the county to conduct a thorough analysis and feasibility study of the area before any rezoning is considered. Industrial or agricultural companies within the reclassified area will be significantly impacted by the zoning change. They are now considered "nonconforming," meaning they can never expand or rebuild if they suffer a loss of more than 50 percent in value from an accident such as a fire. Their only other option is to apply for conditional-use permit--a process that is not guaranteed and could take up to a year. The county also can impose limitations on the permit. Supervisor Milde voted against the office reclassification. He originally championed the urban commercial zone, which is geared toward retail and service industries. Griffis-Widewater District Supervisor Bob Woodson cast the other dissenting vote, citing a more thorough analysis of the area before a reclassification is considered. The new zoning would redevelop the courthouse area into a town-square, pedestrian-friendly community with shops and tree-lined sidewalks. The rezoning would be more conducive to three planned projects, such as the new Interstate 95 interchange at Exit 140, the new public safety building, and the Stafford Hospital Center currently under construction. --Kafia Hosh

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Date published: 3/19/2008

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