INSIDE

Park department seeks to renew levy

By Meg Olson

The local parks district is asking for the same dollars for their operation and maintenance levy on the November ballot, but thanks to new property value appraisals, taxpayers will see a drop in the rate if the measure is approved.

“It’s definitely going down, almost half,” said parks board president Irene Waters at the district’s October 4 meeting. The district’s levy of $35,000 will be spread out among twice the number of property value dollars following the 2006 reassessment of local properties by the county assessor’s office. The amount of tax each property will pay to the parks district per thousand dollars of assessed valuation – the mill rate – will drop to 7 cents, or $14 a year for a $200,000 home.

The parks district levy, which requires voter approval every two years, pays for the maintenance and operation of the community center on Gulf Road, which is home to the local library and senior center as well as a meeting place for local organizations, and Baker Community Field. It also pays for programs including the summer kids camps, the kayak program and helps support the senior center.

With Waters retiring in 2008, commissioner Linda Hughes said they would need to look at funding to fill the operational gap she will leave, from opening the doors to organizing cleaners. “Ultimately we want to have a manager, that’s the goal,” Hughes said.

Waters said future funding needs would hinge on whether or not the county approves a Verizon Wireless proposal to build a cellular telephone transmission tower on land leased from the parks district for $12,000 per year. A tentative date for the county hearing examiner to review the application has been set for November 13.