Bridgeville officials hold the line on taxes, garbage collection fees

Bridgeville property owners will not have to pay more in real estate taxes as a result of the borough’s 2022 budget.

Garbage collection fees also will remain the same, according to Borough Manager Joe Kauer.

Council passed the $10.73 million budget in mid-December, 6-0, with Councilwoman Virginia Schneider absent.

Real estate taxes remain at 10 mills on land and 6.5 mills on buildings. It has been several years since Bridgeville taxes were raised.

Sewer fees will increase slightly as Alcosan’s 7% rate increase will be passed on.

Monthly sewer fees overall are increasing from $15.83 per thousand gallons with a $6.37 per month Alocosan service charge to $16.47 per thousand gallons with the $6.82 monthly Alcosan service charge, effective Jan.1.

The borough portion of the sewer fee remains unchanged and represents $6.73 per thousand gallons of the total fee.

No services or programs were cut to help balance the budget.

Some of the capital improvements planned for next year include reconstruction and slope stabilization on Werner Avenue, road paving, blight removal projects, police and public works equipment upgrades, improvements to public facilities and flood mitigation projects.

Chartiers Park will have all of its roads and parking lots paved as well as the construction and installation of a new playground near shelter No. 1.

The police department is expected to get a 2022 Dodge Charger at an estimated $44,000. A full-time officer is also expected to retire and be replaced.

Public works and police wages will increase 3% as a result of collective bargaining agreements.

Capital purchases for public works include the replacement of a lawn tractor at an estimated $13,000 for a zero-turn tractor.

Other borough projects and civic events, such as the Halloween parade and summer’s Day on the Avenue, are also highlighted in the budget presentation.

The overall spending plan was listed at about $10.73 million. It calls for $4.514 million in the capital improvements fund, $3.325 million in the general fund, $2.3 million in the sanitary sewer fund, $448,700 in the garbage fund, and $137,460 in the highway aid fund.

The general fund is mostly for day-to-day operations while the capital improvements fund is mostly for major projects, upgrades and purchases.

Projected general fund revenues include $1.8 million in real estate taxes; $876,550 in Act 511 taxes including earned income, business privilege and mercantile taxes; $156,750 in permits; and $90,200 in miscellaneous funds.

Projected expenses include $1.2 million for public safety, $664,000 for public works, $657,200 for benefits/pensions, $507,000 for general government, $111,200 for insurances and $134,000 for debt service.

Kauer noted Bridgeville will not have to seek a tax anticipation note, which is a loan many municipalities acquire to have cash on hand for the start of the year and take care of expenses until tax revenue starts coming in.

“In 2022 we have many projects that we will continue to see progress in, from continued water mitigation efforts, to renovations at Chartiers Park, to the seven lane bridge project,” Councilman Joe Verduci said. “ We will see results of the hard work that has been done behind the scenes to lay the groundwork for these projects and that has found a lot of government money to avoid needing to raise taxes.”

The budget has been posted, along with many bullet points outlining what funds will be used for, on the borough’s website. The 52-page presentation is available at bridgevilleboro.com.

“You can see where your tax dollars are going in a very transparent manner,” Kauer said. “We try to put it out there in a user-friendly manner that has a narrative that explains the line items in detail so it’s easy to understand and follow where your tax dollars go.”

Kauer said there was a dip in mercantile and business privilege taxes in 2020 due to the pandemic, but things bounced back in 2021.

Verduci commended police Chief Chad King with how he has managed the department through the pandemic, and said the budget has also been impacted by inflation.