The pros and cons of small town living became evident at Tuesday night’s Humboldt Council meeting when longtime citizen Rex Heape asked Council members to consider the effect of raising property taxes in order to fund the 2021 budget.
The charm of a quaint community comes with the reality that fewer people are relied on to support services such as water and sewer, public safety and roads and sidewalks.
And when such infrastructure begins to age, the burden grows.
“We’ve got a $6 million sewer project that we’ll be paying for until 2060,” said Cole Herder, city administrator. And for the last six months crews have been patching city streets to the tune of $36,000.
As a former civil engineer, Heape didn’t contradict Herder, but only asked council members to consider living within their current budget, “as I do.”
“High taxes make it hard to live in Humboldt,” Heape said, noting property taxes are almost double those in Iola, and a third again more than those in Independence.
The 2021 budget called for a property tax increase of 3.024 mills, bringing them to 93.742. Iola’s are a tad under 48 mills. The increase means the owner of a $100,000 home will pay $1,100 in property taxes, an increase of $60.
Council members acknowledged the burden on residents.
“It’s a problem we all have to face,” said Mayor Nobby Davis. That said, everything is going up.
“When I was 14 years old I worked for Doc Cartwright and got paid 50 cents an hour. Nowadays, 14-year-olds earn $7.25 an hour,” Davis said.
Herder noted that compared to 20 years ago, there are 950 fewer electric meters being read in town, showing a decline in population.
Heape wondered if city staffing was too flush.
And while Herder said payroll for the city’s 25 employees is its biggest expense, the city runs a tight ship and that wages, if anything, are not competitive.
“We average in the $11-an-hour range,” Herder said. “Turnover is high.”
The city is limited is three sources of income, Herder said: Property and sales taxes and utility rates.
Herder noted the lack of being able to generate electricity from its 1981 water plant is a detriment.
