Two-minute impact
Board member Brad Bailey said he felt the board needed to put significant effort into moving the South Gosling Park project forward alongside additional park department growth initiatives discussed during budget workshops in August.
Township President and CEO Monique Sharp said around $1 million has been allocated over fiscal years 2024 and 2025 to move to the second phase of South Gosling Park development, which would include master planning and construction estimates.The fiscal year runs from January to December.
Once the concept and estimates have been completed, which will take around six months, the township will have an opportunity to provide additional funding and review the plans, Chief Operating Officer Chris Nunes said.
“This $1 million wouldn’t even get you to where we turn dirt yet,” Nunes said.
What else?
Including the budget initiatives approved during the previous workshops, the township is left with $1.42 million in unallocated funds from FY 2024 and $1.31 million in FY 2025. Board members also agreed in a 6-1 motion to move forward with maintaining the same tax rate for FY 2025 in order to fund new parks and recreation initiatives and law enforcement—$0.1714 per $100 of home valuation.
The board shared concerns over the high cost of repairs projected for the Waterway Square fountain—$6.4 million—but Sharp said the township has attempted to fix the water leaks and lighting issues there, and major structural problems are the root cause.
“In the past, we have always taken the cheaper route,” Sharp said. “So we spent millions of dollars several times on cheaper routes, thinking that we're going to patch it up enough where that's going to work, and it doesn't. It's a lot of bandaids.”
What they’re saying
“I just want to really up our game on the maintenance,” Bailey said. “I understand we can’t do it all at one time, but we can start holding our contractors and subcontractors accountable. ... We have a level of expectation in this community.”
“Our focus is on maintenance and things that have aged, and we have addressed that, “ board Chair Ann Snyder said. “It’s proactive, not reactive.”
“We have not achieved the no-new-revenue rate, and I know that happens from time to time, but we have not addressed the needs of our taxpayers,” board member Shelley Sekula-Gibbs said. ”I believe in excellence, and I believe in making sure that our community is at the highest standard possible. But there will be better days ahead when we have more revenue coming in on our sales tax that's rebounded.”
What’s next?
Since the proposed tax rate from the township of $0.1714 per $100 of home valuation is above the no-new-revenue rate, the board will hold a public hearing Sept. 5 at 5 p.m. to receive public comments on the tax rate and budget prior to formal adoption in September.
