Monroe looking at tax increase to keep 3 employees

MONROE — Property taxes may increase as a way to save three city positions.

That’s an option the City Council could decide at Tuesday night’s meeting after members told city staff they wanted to see a proposed budget that did not cut one custodial and two parks positions. These positions had been eliminated for the 2012 budget.

If approved, the tax property levy would increase 1 percent for the next five years. This means an homeowner could pay $308 on average next year, instead of the $305 that’s paid now.

The discussion on the proposed $41.9 million budget is scheduled to continue at 7 p.m. Tuesday at council chambers, 806 W. Main St. The budget is scheduled to be adopted Dec. 13.

Another option is to negotiate a change in the police department health plan and using the $70,000 in savings to keep one position. The Monroe Police Officers Guild, the collective bargaining unit that represents about two dozen officers and sergeants, needs to agree to the change first and the negotiations are ongoing, finance director Dianne Nelson said.

The city also can use $300,000 from the 2012 unassigned fund balance to save the positions. Another alternative is eliminating other city programs which could result in layoffs for other workers.

“We need to figure out how to restore two positions,” Councilman Tony Balk said about the parks department on last week’s meeting. “We need to figure out how to maintain what we have.”

Under the proposed budget, the parks department would lose three positions, reducing its department by half.

Including benefits, the parks positions at stake cost between $62,993 and $70,880 a year, while the custodial position costs the city $35,069 a year.

The attempt to save the jobs is a good sign for parks Director Mike Farrell.

“We are in bare bones and taking extra duties,” Farrell said after the meeting. “This is an essential service that we need to preserve.”

Alejandro Dominguez: 425-339-3422; adominguez @heraldnet.com.