Springdale Township property owners can expect a 46% tax increase in their real estate property bills — in addition to recent hikes to their water, sewage and garbage bills.
“With inflation, we were overdue for an increase in millage,” said Tim Basilone, vice president of the township commissioners.
The proposed township budget for next year calls for a 3-mill increase, from 6.5 to 9.5 mills.
A property with the township’s median assessed value of $77,550 would pay $736 per year, which is an increase of $232.
Each mill in Springdale Township brings in about $80,000 in tax revenue, Basilone said.
Township property owners also will see a 36% hike in their Allegheny County tax bills after the county’s budget was approved Tuesday.
Basilone said that, this year, the township realized $517,000 in actual collections from real estate tax revenue. A 3-mill tax increase would raise that number to about $751,000.
The township has not increased real estate taxes in nine years. The past two years, Basilone said, township officials approved a “deficit budget” when they had to dip into reserves to close the gap between revenues and expenditures.
“Our reserve funds are depleting,” he said. “We have to pass the budget to cover the costs of the township.”
The proposed budget’s expenses total $1.14 million. The township’s largest expense is in its public works department, where $200,000 of an allotted $419,800 is designated for highway maintenance and road pavement projects.
“This will allow us to establish a paving program that’s sustainable year after year,” Basilone said.
It’s yet to be determined which, or how many, roads would be paved next year, he said.
Basilone also said the township is seeking $1 million in grant applications for multiple waterline replacements.
In May, the commissioners approved a 7% sewage rate increase and a 35% water rate increase. At the time, officials said the idea behind the increase was to build a financial cushion to handle unforeseen maintenance costs, such as a water or sewer line collapse, rather than needing support from township financial reserves.
The township’s garbage rate next year will increase from $45 to $75 per quarter because of a new contract with County Hauling that was awarded in a joint bid with Springdale and Cheswick. Leaders in all three communities have said the joint effort prevented an even larger rate increase.
“We feel we’ve got three to five years in our water, sewage and garbage contract that we should be able to maintain,” Basilone said.
Springdale Township’s budget proposal also includes a $15,000 allocation to the Lower Valley Ambulance Service. The township’s proposed share to the Allegheny Valley Regional Police Department — which it shares with Cheswick and East Deer — is just over $272,000.
The merged service has been a benefit to the township, Basilone said.
“We did not lose quality of service, but we were able to cut costs,” he said of the merged force.
Commissioners are expected to vote on the budget Dec. 12.
“This board has worked hard to understand what the costs are in terms of operating the township and what fiscal responsibility we have,” Basilone said.