About Brookhaven reporter. (Sandy Springs, GA) 20??-current | View Entire Issue (June 14, 2013)
COMMUNITY AW BuddeN TEAM Buyers Seek Atlanta Market... Summer is Selling Time! Thinking of Buying or Selling in Today's Confusing Market? Contact The Budden Team Experts! The Budden Team - Top Team | Keller Williams Realty First Atlanta ■ #1 Team for Closed Transactions KW Worldwide 2012 KELLER WILLIAMS. R F A I T Y FIRST ATLANTA ■ 365 Transactions Closed 2012 ■ Multi-Million Dollar Sales Club 2012 Call The Buddens for your home’s true market value Julie Budden, Associate Broker 770-360-9446 Julie@kwatl.com Lee Budden, Realtor 770-363-7433 lee@kwatl.com www. thebuddenteam. com 200 Glenridge Point Parkway, Suite 100, Atlanta, GA 30342 | 404-531-5700 DeKalb tax digest shows Brookhaven on solid footing BY MELISSA WEINMAN melissaweinman@reporternewspapers.net Initial numbers from DeKalb Coun ty’s tax digest suggest that Brookhaven may be on better financial footing than officials originally predicted. The tax digest is the value of all the taxable property in DeKalb County. The tax digest must be set before the millage, or tax rate, can be approved. According to the DeKalb digest, the total net assessed value of property in Brookhaven is about $2 billion. “I think it was a little higher than they estimated, but we shouldn’t be sur prised, that was just an estimate,” said Brookhaven Finance Director Bonnie Kline. However, Kline said that number is likely to go down over the next few weeks as people appeal their property appraisals. “Most people don’t appeal to make it higher. It’s generally lower,” Kline said. If Brookhaven City Council ap proved the tentative millage of 3.35, the city would stand to take in about $6.6 million in ad valorem taxes. The council will hold three public hearings and then vote to set the mill- age in time to send it to DeKalb Coun ty by July. The city has scheduled pub lic hearings for 7 p.m., June 17; 10:30 a.m., June 20; and 6:30 p.m., June 20. The hearings will be held at the Brookhaven Municipal Court, 2 Cor porate Blvd., Suite 125, in Brookhav en. “We value the public’s input and want to hear from both residential and commercial property owners,” Mayor J. Max Davis said. The council is scheduled to vote on the final millage rate at 1:30 p.m., July 8. Kline said the city’s tax rate could go down. “That 3.35 has not been voted on or approved as a millage rate. It’s just the maximum that was approved in the (city’s) charter,” Kline said. She said council members have ex pressed interest in lowering the millage, if possible. “That’s going to be the mayor and council’s call on the level of service for next year,” Kline said. “Every dollar the budget increases, we can do more. But the council’s not out to do that. They’re very conservative and they’re not go ing to do that just to build up a cushion or reserve. They live here and pay tax es, too.” Councilman Jim Eyre said he would “I’d like to get the homeowners’ tax burden down as low as we can while also providing a fiscally conservative operating budget for the city. It looks like it’s working in our favor.” - JIM EYRE BROOKHAVEN CITY COUNCILMAN like to lower the millage, if possible. “We’re maxed out and that is not somewhere in my mind that we need to be. Hopefully we can reduce that num ber for our homeowners,” Eyre said. “I’d like to get the homeowners’ tax burden down as low as we can while also provid ing a fiscally conservative operating bud get for the city. It looks like it’s working in our favor.” On July 9, DeKalb County will ap prove the county tax rate and then dis perse the Homestead Option Sales Tax, or HOST money to cities, including Brookhaven. Kline said the city doesn’t know what portion of the sales tax reve nue it will receive. “We’ve got $1.5 million in the bud get, but we don’t know,” Kline said. “We kind of based it on what similar-sized cities have been receiving, but even that can change year to year.” In March, the council approved a $16,465 million annual budget. The council will finalize the budget once ex act revenue figures are available. Kline said the challenge with all the uncertainty surrounding Brookhaven’s budget is that as a new city, there is no past data to rely upon. “This is uncharted territory, when you start with last year’s digest at $0 and this year’s at almost $2 billion,” Kline said. “We’re starting with zero. It’s been a challenge.” But after reviewing the preliminary digest numbers, Kline said she is hope ful that Brookhaven will be on solid fi nancial footing. “I think we’re cautiously optimistic,” Kline said. Brookhaven Government Calendar Brookhaven City Council usually meets on the second and fourth Tuesdays of each month at 7 p.m. at locations to be determined. For complete and up-to-date schedule of Brookhaven city meetings, go to http://brookhavenga.gov . R 2 | JUNE 14 — JUNE 27, 2013 | www.ReporterNewspapers.net BK
