Riviera Beach backs away from property tax cut in preliminary vote on 2025 budget

The Riviera Beach City Council gave preliminary approval to a $199 million budget Thursday, Sept. 5, that does not include the modest property tax reduction city staff members had recommended .

Instead of the property tax rate being reduced to $8.29 per $1,000 of assessed property value, it will remain at $8.35 per $1,000 of assessed property value. Staff members had recommended a reduction in the property tax rate — frequently referred to as the millage rate — as a way to cushion the blow of future increases in debt-service costs as the city moved ahead with a series of large-scale and expensive infrastructure and development projects.

Even if council members had agreed to reduce the property tax rate, most homeowners would still have seen larger property tax bills because of rising property values.

Council members said the importance of having property tax owners face an increase only slightly less than they would have at the reduced rate was outweighed by the city's expansive infrastructure needs, which includes an estimated $98 million in roadway repairs and a new water treatment facility expected to cost more than $300 million .

"My concern is that we need to start aggressively addressing all the infrastructure needs," council member Douglas Lawson said. "These roads and re-doing some of the pipes under these roads, we're going to have to do the entire community since they haven't been addressed in years. We're trying to make sure we find the money to get this done."

Council member Glen Spiritis agreed.

"We just need so much work here, infrastructure-wise," he said. "I don't think this is the right time to lower the millage rate. I think we should maybe consider that next year, but we just have too much to do right now."

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The council voted 4-1 to approve the budget and keep the property tax rate at $8.35 per $1,000 in taxable property value. Council member Tradrick McCoy cast the lone vote against the budget, which will be up for a final vote on Sept. 18 before the next fiscal year begins on Oct. 1.

"We need to be more concerned about our current spending levels," McCoy said.

The $199 million overall budget includes the $11.4 million general fund budget as well as other areas such as the Utility Special District, solid waste, stormwater, parking and debt service.

The overall budget is up by about $22.2 million or $12.6% from the year before. Police and fire services account for a combined $51.1 million, more than a quarter of the city's overall budget, and both agencies would get funding increases — $2.9 million for police and a little more than $3 million for fire.

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The budget includes a debt service amount of $8.6 million, a figure sure to rise as the city sells bonds to raise $115 million for police, fire and recreational facilities. McCoy speculated that that debt service figure could double.

City staff members built a proposed a budget with future debt costs in mind. The small property tax reduction, which would have been the third decrease in the past nine years, would have allowed property owners to collectively pay $544,000 less than they otherwise would have paid.

How much more will residents pay in property taxes?

Now, with council members deciding to hold the rates steady, their bills will rise higher as property values continue to rise.

The average home value in Riviera Beach is $403,176, according to figures from Zillow. Based on that figure, the owner of a home valued at that amount will have a property tax bill of $2,949, not including additional costs for debt or public safety service. That tax bill is about $23 higher than it would have been if council members had followed the staff's recommendation to reduce the property tax rate.

Some seniors in Riviera Beach are eligible for additional homestead exemption help that would reduce the taxable value of their homes and, in turn, their property tax bills.

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Eschewing the staff's suggested property tax reduction means the city will have an extra $468,000 to spend, with the Riviera Beach Community Redevelopment Agency, which uses taxpayer money to revitalize distressed areas, getting about $76,000 more.

As council members were discussing the property tax rate, Randy Sherman, the city's director of finance and administrative services, said the city could use the money gained by holding it steady on infrastructure in the upcoming budget year and for debt service in the years after that. That suggestion dovetailed with one from Spiritis, who made a motion to have the money directed to infrastructure or service on debt incurred to pay for infrastructure.

McCoy, however, said the suggestion was not germaine to a discussion of the property tax rate, and Spiritis rescinded his motion, leaving it unclear how the additional money will be spent.

Wayne Washington is a journalist covering West Palm Beach, Riviera Beach and race relations for The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at wwashington@pbpost.com . Help support our work; subscribe today .

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Riviera Beach backs away from property tax cut in preliminary vote on 2025 budget