(Okoboji)– An Okoboji resident says an increase in the city’s levy for the upcoming fiscal year is too high and should be lowered.
Bob Vernon appeared at Tuesday’s council meeting and called on the council to reconsider the levy, saying it should be lowered to $4.75 per thousand dollars valuation.
City Administrator Dennis Daly says under Iowa law, the city can no longer re-adjust the levy. He says the deadline for doing that was March 15th…the deadline for certifying the budget with the state.
Vernon says the increased taxes, along with higher utility bills and other expenses, are directly impacting retired residents on fixed incomes.
As a cost saving move, he wants the city to scrap a 50-thousand dollar project to install street lights along Sanborn Avenue. A polling of council members indicated they would not be willing to reconsider the project. Councilman David Thoreson says many residents requested the lighting, saying the street is heavily travelled and that safety is a factor with a city park in the neighborhood.
