Sleepy Hollow to ask voters for 33 percent property tax hike

Twice in the past two years, Sleepy Hollow residents shot down referendum questions that would have increased the village's portion of their property taxes by more than 80 percent.

Now, Sleepy Hollow officials are asking for a smaller property tax hike - roughly 33 percent - and voters will decide in March if the third time's the charm for the village.

The village board Monday agreed to place a question on the spring 2016 ballot that would collect an additional $180,000 per year in property taxes from the bedroom community's more than 3,300 residents.

If the referendum is approved, the owner of a home with an assessed value of $100,000 would pay $66 more in property taxes, Village President Stephan Pickett said. A home with an assessed value of $250,000 would see a $165 increase.

"The caveat, though, is that this has been presented as (the first) step," Pickett said.

Even if voters approve the tax hike, he said, the additional $180,000 annually would be a temporary solution - only be enough to keep the village functioning for two years without significant cuts in services.

"We're going to have to go back in a couple years to get the amount we're looking for," Pickett said.

At a finance committee meeting earlier this year, committee member Mike Tennis said Sleepy Hollow would be justified in seeking an annual $228,000 more from residents.

Fearing that voters would once again shoot down the referendum, however, Tennis recommended officials instead seek a smaller property tax hike.

"But (residents) are going to have to know that this is not the end," Pickett said.

If the referendum passes, officials said, the additional revenue would go toward the village's general fund, road improvements and the five-year capital fund, used for long-term expenses.

Without it, Sleepy Hollow's financial future is uncertain, Trustee Don Ziemba said.

"We've been taking (services) down slowly, but going forward, it's going to be a problem," he said.

If voters deny the tax hike, Pickett suggested creating a task force to consider the village's options, which could include merging with a neighboring town or becoming an unincorporated part of the county.

"If this tax referendum doesn't go through," Pickett said, "where do we go? What do we do?"