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Waldwick introduces 2025 budget that would raise taxes about 3.47%
Summary
The borough administrator presented a 2025 budget that would raise property taxes about 3.47% (roughly $79 per average homeowner annually), citing rising insurance, pension and sewer authority costs and the loss of one-time federal and state aid. Council members debated revenue-generation and service priorities before moving the budget forward on first reading.
The Borough of Waldwick presented an initial 2025 municipal budget that would increase property taxes by roughly 3.47%, an amount the administrator said equates to about $79 per average homeowner annually (about $6.58 per month).
The borough administrator reviewed drivers of the increase, pointing to double-digit health-insurance rises, higher pension and debt-service costs, contractual salary increases for the police and public works departments, growing solid-waste expenses and a one-point increase related to sewer authority charges. The administrator also said the borough lost key non-tax revenue sources used in prior years, including about $1.057 million from the American Rescue Plan and roughly $257,000 in a state municipal relief program, leaving a larger structural gap.
Council members expressed differing views on the cause and response. One council member urged finding new ratables and non-tax revenue to avoid further burdening homeowners, while others pressed to preserve items they characterized as high-priority for residents — including an additional police officer to support a traffic-safety bureau and school safety officers. "We have to get more aggressive," one council member said, urging redevelopment and revenue diversification; another said that while tax increases are unpopular, the borough has limited room to cut without trimming services residents expect.
Staff said the budget includes a proposed new police records clerk position intended to improve OPRA processing and to potentially produce fee revenue. The administrator also said the capital program allocates funds for water-infrastructure projects, an aggressive road program and other upgrades that officials described as necessary rather than discretionary.
The council moved to introduce the budget on first reading and set a public hearing for the statutorily required timeline. No final tax rate was adopted at the meeting; the budget will return for additional council consideration and a public hearing in two weeks.
What’s next: the council will consider the budget on second reading at a future meeting and hear public comment before any final vote.
