City Council also adopted the voter-approval property tax rate of $0.4333 per $100 valuation, the highest rate allowed before officials would have to host a tax rate election. However, council members did contemplate raising taxes above the voter-approval rate to fund more city initiatives.
During budget workshops Aug. 12-16, council members decided instead to focus on top needs and delay additional items to the future. While city officials will not be asking residents to approve a higher tax rate this fiscal year, a $70 million bond referendum is on the ballot this November to help fund water, wastewater and stormwater projects.
The overview
Priorities in the 2024-25 budget are hiring new police officers, funding a crime victim specialist, adding paramedics and purchasing flock safety cameras, City Manager Sharon Citino said.
“I’m happy to see that the new officers were included in the budget,” Police Chief Onesimo Lopez said. “This shows that the City Council as a body is responsive to citizen concerns and is committed to public safety in Bellaire.”
Mayor Gus Pappas said Bellaire will likely need to raise taxes to fund the items that were left off of the FY 2024-25 budget, which included capital improvement projects and hiring city personnel.
A city must get voter approval for its tax rate if revenue raised from existing property would increase by more than 3.5% from the previous year.
“In the current climate, ... we have to make a lot of tough trade-offs,” Pappas said. “It’s very difficult to operate inside the 3.5% revenue cap in the environment we are in. If we can’t get what we need inside the voter-approval rate, then we will need to go to the voters to raise taxes in the future.”
A large portion of this year’s budget will fund items related to public safety, including:
- New ambulance: $364,000
- Four marked patrol cars: $353,000
- Three new police officers: $318,000
- Crime victim specialist: $23,000
- Four flock safety cameras: $14,600
- Gear for officers: $10,800
- Deputy city clerk: $86,000
- New fire marshal: $70,000
- Risk manager, safety and training specialist: $58,000
- Feld Park lighting and netting: $270,000
- Updated 10-year parks master plan: $150,000
- Consultant for economic development: $50,000
City Council wanted to focus on public health and safety, City Manager Sharon Citino said.
“Creating the budget is about being fiscally responsible and we were able to do that this year,” she said. “Policing and medical services... are the main priorities for the city right now.”
Chief Lopez said Bellaire residents have been calling for additional police visibility in the community for the past few years believing there to be a rise in crime in the city.
While he said he doesn’t believe there has been a surge in crime, according to the police department’s year-in-review reports, there has been an uptick in calls for service since 2019. Response times have also increased.
The average response time in 2021 was two and a half minutes, according to police reports. In mid-2023, it grew to between four and five minutes, where it has remained since. Lopez said he would like to see that average response time reduced to two and a half minutes with the arrival of the new hires.
Additional personnel could also help lessen the amount of time officers are responding to calls.
According to a police staffing report by the International City and County Management Association for Public Safety Management in 2021, officers should not spend more than 60% of their time answering calls for service. Lopez said his officers are in the 70%-80% range.
That time is expected to drop between 50%-60% with the new hires, Lopez said. This will allow officers more time for proactive policing such as traffic stops and active patrol, he said.
Four stationary flock cameras will also assist with traffic and crime enforcement, Lopez said. The devices are used to read license plates and capture images of vehicles, according to the Flock Safety website, the manufacturer of the cameras.
Emergency medical services will also see a boost in personnel with a handful of part-time paramedics added in the budget to staff a second primary ambulance.
Bellaire Fire Chief Deacon Tittel said, for the past 3-5 years, the fire department has seen an increase in call volume and has had to receive aid from neighboring cities.
With the additional paramedics and second ambulance, he said the fire department will be able to reduce the use of mutual aid and provide better service for residents. Paramedics will be used primarily during peak hours Monday-Friday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Tittel said the goal is to start recruiting in September with a potential start date in early 2025.
City Council voted Aug. 19 to place the $70 million bond package on ballots Nov. 5, separated into two ballot items, including:
- A $30 million bond for water and wastewater improvements
- A $40 million bond for stormwater improvements
Jones said connecting to Houston’s wastewater treatment plant was the cheaper of three options the city explored. It would cost $100 million to rebuild Bellaire’s plant or $71.5 million to rehab it, whereas connecting to Houston’s plant would cost around $30 million.
“Rain events are more frequent and intense,” Jones said. “As a result, what our infrastructure was designed to do many years ago is not up to standard anymore.”
If the bond is approved, Chief Financial Officer Terrence Beaman said staff will account for it in FY 2025-26. He said the bond could be paid by either ratepayers through drainage fees or an increase in the tax rate.
Drainage projects could also be a priority this year with a monthly fee potentially being added to resident bills. City officials proposed the addition of a stormwater drainage utility fee in July to create revenue for drainage and infrastructure projects. The proposed flat rate monthly fee for residential owners is $6.
According to city officials, the fee will cover operations and maintenance expenditures such as personnel, equipment, infrastructure and drainage projects.
What's next
Sept. 16: Public hearing and final council vote on stormwater drainage utility fee
Oct. 1: Stormwater utility fee could be implemented
Oct. 7: Deadline for voter registration
Nov. 5: Voters consider bond package as part of general election
