City council trims levy to 2.97%, prepares for 2025 initiatives and projects
As the new year approaches, the Grand Marais City Council is working to finalize the 2025 budget and levy.
In September, the city council set the preliminary levy at 6.75%. Since then, the city has received increased expected revenue from the Grand Marais Liquor Store and the Grand Marais Recreation Park and reduced insurance costs for city staff.
The changes, discussed during the recent city council meeting on Wednesday, Dec. 11, have led to the city trimming the levy to 2.97%.
In the meeting, City Administrator Mike Roth said the increased revenue from the liquor store was $16,000. The reduction in staff insurance costs was $4800. With the increased revenue and other minor changes to the budget, the proposed 2025 property tax levy is now at $1,111,831.26, a 2.97% increase from $1,079,742.58 in 2024.
The city is currently undergoing a significant financial undertaking with the construction of the new city hall/liquor store. As of January 2024, the project was estimated to cost $8.5 million.
In the Dec. 11 meeting, Roth said that the city has “been building up the general revenue side anticipating a very large debt payment coming up.”
He said the city transferred that expense item from the general revenue to the debt side, which is why the levy “only had to change about 3%.”
“This is the effect of many, many years of planning for this project and getting ready for it and saving up for it,” Roth said. “And here we are, year one of our big debt payment, and we’re going to be able to do it with a modest levy increase.”
Grand Marais Mayor Tracy Benson said that once construction is complete and city operations in the building resume, some ongoing costs, such as the utilities, are unknown. While the city has made some future financial projections, given the payment of bonds for the project, there remain a few unknowns about future levy increases. “So we just are going to watch this next year and see how those costs come out.”
The city will officially approve the 2025 budget and levy during the Wednesday, Dec. 18 meeting.
As the city plans for 2025 and beyond, it also anticipates setting aside money in the budget to improve city infrastructure. Benson said city streets and the wastewater treatment facility are priorities in the new year.
“Infrastructure, in general, is one of the identified goals of the council for this coming year,” Benson said. “And, of course, the wastewater treatment plant is huge, and that is the number one goal of the city.”
WTIP’s Kalli Hawkins spoke with Grand Marais Mayor Tracy Benson live on Daybreak on Friday, Dec. 13, about the levy, future financial planning, and 2025 city council goals. The audio from the interview is below.
Kalli Hawkins December 14, 2024
