Summerfield has a problem.

It’s trying to keep its town charter and, in that attempt to do so, town leaders are proposing nearly doubling the town’s tax rate and adding new services.

The new proposed budget for fiscal 2025-2026 calls for raising the property tax rate from 2.75 cents to 5 cents per $100 of assessed property value, a change that would generate more than $2 million in revenue based on a total tax base of $2.04 billion.

Although the increase is big in terms of percentage, the total tax rate in the end would remain low compared to other municipalities in the state. Town residents aren’t expected to complain too much given the reason for the increase.

The increase, and the addition of new services, is being done in order to help Summerfield convince state leaders amid the ongoing discussion around North Carolina House Bill 801, which targets so-called “paper towns.”  Those are incorporated areas with minimal services.

State legislators took a very close look at Summerfield after an extended battle with farmer and developer David Couch, who won in an effort to de-annex about 1000 acres of property in order to move forward with a residential and mixed-use development.

Town Manager Twig Rollins and Finance Officer Jennifer Kelley presented the $10.87 million budget proposal at the Tuesday, May 27 town council meeting.

This is the first tax increase for Summerfield since 2014.

A central feature of this budget is its emphasis on expanding services while simultaneously maintaining Summerfield’s debt-free status.

Summerfield has operated for years as a limited-services municipality, however, the changing needs of its residents and legislative pressure from Raleigh are causing a shift in philosophy for town leaders.

Of the total $10.87 million budget, about $8.43 million will come from grants, and an additional $57,210 will come from the fund balance – essentially the town’s savings account – to close the gap between revenues and expenses.

The town of Summerfield doesn’t have a stop light (some of the HOAs do), but that will be changing soon. [Scott Yost’s note: Apparently I was mistaken about this.] The new funding will be used for signs and street lighting, a new public safety contract, and in-house billing for trash services, which is all meant to show state legislators – including some who currently favor taking Summerfield’s town charter away – that the town really does deserve to be a town.

The budget also introduces funding for a new position to manage public records requests, upgraded audio streaming equipment and a comprehensive website overhaul.

A 3 percent cost-of-living adjustment is included for town employees, signaling an effort to retain and reward town staff, who are all relatively new since last year the entire town staff resigned to show opposition to how the Town Council treated the former town manager.

If the new budget is adopted by the Town Council, then administration – including personnel, services, and capital outlay – is set to receive approximately $679,000, while Parks and Recreation costs are projected at about $749,000. That’s a service that many Summerfield residents are proud of.

Other line items include $138,524 for the governing body, $264,000 for professional services, $162,300 for property and building maintenance and $158,525 for community services and committee functions. In total, these departmental appropriations amount to about $2.44 million.

Summerfield has a lot of money in the bank: Its current reserves exceed $7 million. That strong fund balance has enabled the town to avoid debt while still moving forward with some major capital projects like the Bandera development, the A&Y Greenway and a new water tank – all of which are in progress after years of planning.

In addition to the proposed tax rate increase, some fees will move higher if the proposed budget is adopted in June by the Town Council.

The proposed budget has already gotten the go-ahead from the town’s Finance Committee, which met on Monday, May 19 and recommended approval.

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