West Melbourne City Council adopted a tentative fiscal 2025–26 millage rate of $0.8151 per $1,000 of taxable value and approved a $103.29 million tentative budget after a public hearing and staff presentation Tuesday night.

The vote on the tentative millage rate came on a motion from Ms. Adams, seconded by Mr. Bentley, and passed unanimously 7–0. Later in the meeting the council approved the tentative budget on a motion from Mr. Frampus, seconded by Ms. McGuire; that vote was also 7–0. The council set a final public hearing on the budget for 6 p.m. on Sept. 16, 2025.

City staff emphasized the budget reflects a planned use of reserves to fund large capital projects. “Our total budget for this budget coming year is gonna be 103,289,000, $460,” Mr. Rohde said during a slide presentation, noting a roughly 12% increase from the prior year driven largely by capital spending. Staff said the proposed millage represents a rollback from the prior rate and will reduce the city’s share of a typical property tax bill; Rohde said the city receives about 14% of a homeowner’s overall property tax bill.

Why it matters: Council and staff framed the budget as a multi‑year investment in infrastructure—particularly water, sewer and roads—while trying to limit the tax impact on residents. The council moved forward with the tentative numbers so staff and departments can continue project work and recruitment ahead of final adoption.

Key capital items and revenue context

- Water‑treatment plant: staff presented a two‑year construction and startup plan with roughly $27 million in project spending during the current budget cycle. The city expects to take operational control of the facility late next fiscal year, with turnover targeted for Halloween 2026. Mr. Rohde said staff planned a phased hiring schedule so operators can train on the new plant before it enters service.

- Water purchase and transmission: the budget includes funding for ongoing annual purchase of treated water from the City of Melbourne (about $6.1 million per year) and $4.1 million for transmission and conveyance lines to deliver raw water from four production wells to the new plant. Rohde said the council built an anticipated Melbourne rate increase (about 10.5% as discussed publicly by Melbourne) into their projections and will mirror any final Melbourne action in the water‑purchase line item.

- Public works administration building and building department facility: $6.7 million total with $2.5 million from the general fund allocated this year for non‑building department costs.

- Public land acquisition and parkland: $3.3 million to acquire a parcel to be transferred to the city plus a $1.0 million allocation for future fire station site or parkland acquisition (total $4.3 million).

- Henry Avenue improvements: $2.0 million set aside to move forward if grant opportunities and final designs align.

Staff said some of these large one‑time costs will be paid from accumulated cash reserves rather than new taxes. “This year the appropriation of the fund balance is one of the largest sources of revenue for this $103 million budget,” Rohde said. Staff projected an ending general fund reserve of about $14.6 million—roughly 80% of operating expenses—even after the planned capital draws.

Water plant staffing and operations

Staff presented a hiring schedule for nine new positions to operate the new plant. The city will operate the plant directly; councilmembers asked whether contracting operation remained under consideration and staff replied the city intends to own and operate the facility.

Mr. Rohde and planning staff described the planned operating model as a 16‑hour per day, seven‑day operation (not 24‑hour), with roles to include a water plant director, a chief operator, and multiple operators. Rohde said the city expects to phase hires across quarters so employees can build experience and licensing hours before becoming independent crew leads: “We will be running 7 days, 16 hours at the water plant… we’ll have the water plant director, our chief water plant operator, our water plant operator… we’ll have 2 additional water plant operators.” He added that some hires may enter with certification and others will need time on the job to attain higher certifications.

Council questions focused on recruitment and competitiveness. Mr. Gaylord asked whether the salary ranges would be competitive within Brevard County; Rohde said the ranges were benchmarked to nearby utilities and that the city is aiming to be competitive regionally rather than statewide. Multiple councilmembers asked staff to keep pay ranges sufficiently flexible so the city can hire certified operators when needed.

Personnel and ongoing costs

Staff described the budget’s personnel portion as the city’s largest recurring expenditure, with an average wage increase of about 3.5% budgeted for employees; the overall wage ranges for non‑represented positions were adjusted by about 2% to limit pay compression (the council later approved a separate resolution adjusting wage ranges). Aside from nine new water plant positions, Rohde said the budget adds no other net new full‑time positions; one existing fire inspector position was reclassified and reassigned to IT after the county assumed fire inspection duties.

Process and next steps

Council approved the tentative millage rate (0.8151) and the tentative FY2025–26 budget 7–0. Staff will continue project planning and hiring; the council will take a final vote on the millage and budget at a public hearing set for Sept. 16, 2025.

Ending

Councilmembers and staff described the plan as aligning short‑term reserve use with longer‑term investments in utilities and roads while holding the line on most recurring staffing increases. The city manager said staff would return with final numbers and with updates on recruitment and grant applications tied to the capital projects.