Upcoming budget hearings give Boerne residents a chance to speak out on the city’s approved $138 million budget based on a tax rate of $0.4716, a half-cent reduction from the current year’s budget.
Council unanimously approved the certified tax roll and setting of a tax rate for the 2024-25 budget at its Aug. 13 meeting, the culmination of months of study, review and number-crunching by city administration and department heads.
“We’re pleased to have filed a budget that we think meets all of our budget goals,” Ben Thatcher, city manager, said. “I’m proud of this budget because it builds on all the great work we’ve been accomplishing the last three, four years.”
The $138 million budget, according to Finance Director Sara Buckelew, is a 2.4% decrease from last year’s budget.
The council set public hearings for Aug. 27 and Sept. 10 before it finalizes its 2024-25 expected revenue and anticipated expenditures to continue servicing Boerne’s 23,000-plus residents.
“This is a half-cent tax rate reduction that was not required,” Danny Zincke, assistant city manager, told council. In years past, budget tax rates required adjustments due to state-mandated property tax cuts, skyrocketing proper evaluations and voter-approved bond issues.
“This (budget) still maintains all optimal fund balances with ... no proposed service-level reductions,” Zincke said.
The city realized a 2% increase in taxable values based on the appraisals provided by the Kendall Country Appraisal District, slightly offset by the city’s half-cent reduction — meaning homeowners’ tax bills will increase despite the reduced budget and tax rate reduction.
Buckelew told council the average home value increased to $462,836, from last year’s budgeting figure of $423,525.
“This is primarily due to the new properties added to the roll, the high value of those new properties, and not from existing properties on the role last year,” she said.
The tax bill for an average home is $2,183, with $1,635 going into the city’s maintenance and operations (M&O) budget, the remaining $548 set aside for the city’s interest and sinking (I&S) debt service obligation.
“It cost about $5.12 per day to be a resident in the city of Boerne,” Buckelew said, which covers all the city’s road maintenance, upkeep of 483 acres of parks, the municipal library, and emergency services response from the city’s fire and police departments.
The budget contains a 4% cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for staff beginning Oct. 1, with no increase in the cost of the city’s benefit insurance offering.
The budget includes six new employee positions: a cybersecurity IT analyst and mental health officer in the police department, both secured through grant application funding; a communications engagement specialist; and three utilities employees, an engineer, a GIS tech and an administrative assistant. These three are funded through the utilities fund.
The budget includes $3 million in infrastructure projects, including $1.4 million toward fire station No. 2, $430,000 toward street work on Cascade Caverns and $420,00 toward Bucee’s Way, a Kinder Park restroom rehab project, construction of a Plant Street parking lot, creation of a John Road-School Street roundabout, and ongoing road reconstruction funded by previous bond monies.
Among equipment and materials to be purchased or upgraded during the budget year include library carpet replacement, fire station repairs, purchase of multi-band radios and breathing apparatus, a dump truck and a broom sweeper, a John Deere mower, an ADA pool lift, upgrade of courtroom audio-visual system, LED stop signs, and needs studies for a new animal care facility, and a downtown parking garage study.
“A lot of great effort has come into play as we’ve presented a $138 million budget for your consideration,” Thatcher said.
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