Endorsement: Deer Park sales tax hike

The village of Deer Park has been in the enviable position of riding a trend of rising sales tax revenue since the opening of the Deer Park Town Center shopping mall seven years ago. It has no property tax, no vehicle sticker fee, no real estate transfer tax. Now growth in sales tax revenue has leveled off, the infrastructure in the 50-year-old community is aging and street repair costs are skyrocketing. Of the annual village budget of about $3.5 million, about $1.4 million goes to police protection, which over the years has been upped from eight hours of patrol a day by Lake County to 24 hours by Kildeer. Street and culvert repair costs have gone from $180,000 to $800,000.

In looking at ways to increase revenue, the village board unanimously agreed to ask voters to approve a 0.5 percentage-point sales tax increase, or an additional half-cent on the dollar. If approved, sales tax revenue will increase from about $1.4 million to about $2.1 million, enough to fund most of the road program. An increase in the sales tax has the advantage of getting mostly nonresidents to pay the cost of local government. Village President Scott Gifford said the shopping mall management estimates more than 95 percent of its customers come from out of town. While mall management had questions about the proposal and how the money would be spent, it hasn't come out in opposition, Village Administrator Jim Connors said. The increase would still leave the sales tax at the mall lower than at most of its competitors, and substantially lower than at those in Cook County. If residents don't approve the increase, the village will need to cut back roadwork and consider alternative funding sources, officials said.

While the proposed sales tax increase is large, for village residents it seems the least painful way to maintain the level of services they currently have. We recommend a yes vote.