Mill Creek MetroParks board lays out levy options

By Brandon Klein | April 14, 2015 at 12:05a.m.

CANFIELD

The Mill Creek MetroParks Board of Park Commissioners didn’t come to a decision on which levy option to put before voters in November.

Park Treasurer Kevin Smith explained four options Monday night. One of the options is the renewal of the 15-year, 1.75-mill levy that provides the bulk of the park’s funding.

Board President Lou Schiavoni said the board still has more discussions planned before coming to a decision by June.

The current levy generates about $6.5 million annually and costs the owner of a $100,000 home about $50.24 per year. That levy is based on 2001 property values and will generate funds through 2016. Placing a straightforward renewal levy also would retain 12.5 percent in property-tax rollback, Smith said.

That’s because new or replacement levies don’t qualify for the property-tax rollback after the state ended it with the budget approved in summer 2013, according to Vindicator files.

The second option is a 1.75-mil replacement levy that would generate $6.9 million — an increase of $381,920 in funding. That would increase the cost to $61.26 per year for a homeowner of the same-valued home.

But the replacement levy also would eliminate rollbacks, Smith said.

The third option would be a 1.75-mill levy as a renewal with an additional .25 mill added on. The rollbacks would stay in place for the 1.75-mill part of the levy but not for the additional millage, Smith said. That would generate about $1 million more in funding and would cost homeowners about $58.95 per year.

The fourth option would be a 2-mill replacement levy that would generate an increase of $1.3 million in funding but cost about $70 per year for homeowners.

Schiavoni said he’s interested in just going for the straightforward renewal. The park operates on a $10 million budget, and the current levy makes up a large portion of that budget to fund park programming and maintain trails, bike paths and the lakes, he said.

The next board meeting will be at 6 p.m. May 11 at Yellow Creek Lodge, 19 Lowellville Road, Struthers.