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Flower Hill adopts 2025–26 budget with 1.7% tax‑levy increase; prioritizes roadwork and vehicle replacements
Summary
The Village of Flower Hill adopted its 2025–26 budget, keeping the tax levy increase to 1.7% and prioritizing road projects through a piggybacked contract with the Town of North Hempstead, capital equipment replacements funded partly by ARPA and reserve transfers, and a state‑funded sewer feasibility study.
The Village of Flower Hill on Tuesday adopted its 2025–26 budget, the board said, approving a spending plan that the trustees described as fiscally conservative and below the state tax‑cap.
Speaker 1 presented the tentative budget, saying the village would increase its tax levy by 1.7% while using a mixture of reserves, a $50,000 transfer from the current year and expected outside contributions to pay for capital roadwork and equipment replacements. The presentation noted the village used ARPA funds to replace two pickup trucks in the current year and is prioritizing replacement of an aging international dump truck, a payloader and an SUV in the coming budget cycle.
The board highlighted a cost‑saving approach to road repairs: the village plans to "piggyback" on the Town of North Hempstead's asphalt paving contract to obtain a lower negotiated per‑square‑foot rate and extend the village's paving coverage. The budget presentation listed estimated road project costs as follows: Stony Town about $200,000; Ridge Drive East section about $125,000; Country Club Brookside about $39,000; curb work at Bridal Drive and Ridge Drive West about $24,000; and catch‑basin replacements about $15,000. Those projects were estimated to total roughly $402,000, leaving the roads capital plan with about $350,000 remaining, figures the presentation described as approximate.
Speaker 1 also explained that fire district charges (Port Washington and Roslyn) are largely pass‑through costs; the presentation listed a combined fire total of $763,000 that the village receives and remits to the fire districts. To show operating changes more clearly, the presenter set aside fire pass‑through amounts when comparing year‑to‑year operating expenses.
On revenues, the village reported increases in interest earnings on reserve balances and modest gains in permits, fines and miscellaneous receipts (including a PILOT contribution tied to Saint Francis property purchases). "The tax levy is only going up 1.7%, which is below the New York State tax cap," Speaker 1 said during the presentation.
After public questions from residents about permitting fees, road‑impact fees and how piggybacking affects unit costs, Speaker 1 moved to adopt the tentative budget and the board approved the formal resolution adopting the final budget for the fiscal year commencing June 1, 2025 and ending May 31, 2026. The motion carried by voice vote with no recorded dissent.
Next steps: trustees said the adopted budget and supporting slides will be posted online; residents requested a version of slides that separates fire pass‑through and operating revenue for easier comparison.
