Mount Prospect expecting to hold line on property taxes

Mount Prospect residents could see no increase in village property taxes for the second time in three years, but single-family homeowners likely will face an 8% hike in refuse collection fees.

Keeping the property tax levy flat was proposed Tuesday during 2021 budget discussions between the village board and its finance commission.

Finance Director Amit Thakkar told the joint panel that the village will not reduce services or raise taxes as part of the proposed $19.4 million levy. The levy is the total amount of property taxes the village will seek.

Under the proposed levy, the owner of a home valued at $300,000 would expect to pay $864 in taxes to the village.

Thakkar presented an overall budget that calls for more than $137 million in revenues - an increase of nearly 19% - and more than $132 million in expenditures, a reduction of nearly 14%. Proceeds from bond issues and grants are contributing to the revenue growth.

The reduction in expenses is mainly due to the completion of major capital projects such as new police and fire headquarters and the Maple Street Parking Deck.

The budget takes into account an estimated loss of $1.2 million due to COVID-19.

Thakkar said the refuse rates were last increased in 2016.

"We have survived without those increases up until now, but now we will have a negative fund balance if we don't do anything at this time," he said.

The current refuse rate is $235 a year.

"An 8% increase, after having not doing an increase for four years, is really rather moderate, so at least we didn't get ourselves too far in the hole here," Mayor Arlene Juracek said. "But I think we all agree with the philosophy of matching the cost with the charges each year, so that we don't have a major increase unexpectedly."