Xenia council introduces citywide street-lighting assessment for 2025
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Summary
Council received an introduction to Ordinance 2025-14 to levy a citywide street-lighting assessment for the 2025 tax year. Staff said the project will cost $243,000, with $238,140 to be assessed to property owners; a homeowner with a $100,000 valuation would pay about $12 annually.
Xenia City Council on June 9 heard the introduction of Ordinance 2025-14, a proposed citywide street-lighting assessment for the 2025 tax year.
Acting City Manager Ryan Henry told council the total cost of the 2025 street-lighting improvement project is $243,000. Under state law the city must pay 2 percent of the total, leaving $238,140 to be divided among all properties in the city. If the ordinance is adopted and filed with the Greene County auditor, the assessment will appear on each parcel's tax bill for the 2025 tax year and be collected in 2026. Henry said the assessment will be levied by percentage of property tax valuation and paid in two semiannual installments. He said the assessment is approximately $1 per month for every $100,000 of property valuation—about $12 a year on a $100,000 home.
Council members asked how the public would be notified of an option Henry described to prepay the full assessment to the city finance department within 30 days of ordinance adoption. Henry said prepaying would allow property owners to avoid the county auditor's collection fees (commonly described as about a 5 percent fee). Council agreed staff could post the option on social media and include notice on utility bills.
Council members also asked how the new citywide district would affect four existing subdivisions that already have street-lighting assessments. Henry said if council adopts the ordinance in June the administration will bring a July ordinance to amend and end the four older districts for tax year 2024; assessments already collected for those districts would be retained and the citywide assessment would take effect for tax year 2025 on Jan. 1.
Henry said the administration recommended a one-year assessment because the city's lighting contract with Miami-Dolly Lighting expires at the end of 2025; staff may return next year with a five-year assessment recommendation, the maximum term, to avoid annual reauthorization.
The ordinance was introduced for first reading; no vote was taken on final adoption at the June 9 meeting.