Winter Park and Maitland hold millage rates steady

Winter Park and Maitland both held the line on their millage rates on Monday as the city officials voted to keep tax rates steady from last year.

The Winter Park City Commission voted to keep the current rate of 4.0923 mills, the same rate the city has maintained for the past seven years. Meanwhile, the Maitland City Council voted to keep the city’s millage at 4.15 mills, the same place the rate was set last year following a bump up from 3.83 mills where the rate had stagnated since 2007.

Winter Park’s existing rate of homeowners paying an estimated $4.09 per $1,000 of taxable property value is currently the second lowest millage rate in Orange County, only behind Apopka.

“We’re very proud of the fact that this Commission has made that a priority,” Mayor Steve Leary said.

The Winter Park City Commission nearly raised its millage rate during their July 27 meeting. Commissioner Greg Seidel said the city shouldn’t rule out increasing the millage rate and slightly raising property taxes due to the many projects Winter Park hopes to pursue in the future.

“I just don’t want to limit ourselves moving forward being in a very surging economy right now,” Seidel said. “[We’ve had] a lot of capital projects that have been in limbo through a recessionary time… I’d like to make them happen.”

Seidel made a motion to increase the tentative rate by .50 mills, but Mayor Steve Leary and the three remaining Commissioners voted down the amendment.

Winter Park also voted to approve its budget for the upcoming fiscal year on Monday. Significant items include the addition of two police positions that were previously frozen and $1.2 million going toward renovating greens and fairways at the Winter Park County Club.

“The golf course is something that has been long overdue,” Leary said. “We’ve tightened our belt over the past decade and our city manager has led us through some really difficult financial times. We’re coming out ahead of the game and now it’s time to go back and look at some of those areas that, back when things were a little questionable with the economy, we kind of put to the side.”

Maitland City Council members seemed more serious about considering a raise in taxes this year, approving a proposed jump of .1 mills, which would have cost homeowners 10 cents more per $1,000 of taxable property value, at a preliminary budget meeting in July.

Councilwoman Bev Reponen, who proposed the .1-mil raise, said that by adding the additional funding to the budget, it would give the city more breathing room to fund overdue improvement projects and unfreeze some of the 10 city positions that have been vacant and unfunded since the recession in 2009.

“I’m just thinking that we have toed the line since 2009, it’s time to start expanding,” Reponen said in the July meeting. “Things are going to be moving all around us and increasing everywhere we look. I think we’d be better to be prepared.”

The proposed increase was revoked at the city’s next budget meeting on Sept. 14, when Council members voted the proposed rate back down to 4.15 mills, where it would stay when the budget was finalized this week.

The approved budget unfreezes one grounds maintenance position, and adds two new jobs – one a customer service specialist and the other a facilities tradesworker – to the city’s payroll. The budget also includes $744,000 to fund the impending renovations to turn Independence Lane into a “festival street.”

Funding for these and other expenditures, without adding a property tax increase, put the budget out of balance, with the city drawing $2.38 million from the city’s fund balance. Assistant City Manager Sharon Anselmo said that leaves the city with $1.18 million in unreserved fund balance for the coming year.

The new budgets for both cities kick in on Thursday, Oct. 1.