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Town manager recommends 2¢ property tax increase to cash-fund fire station and parks projects
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Summary
At a Fuquay Varina town board budget workshop, Town Manager Adam Mitchell recommended a 2¢ property-tax increase—raising the municipal rate from 35.8¢ to 37.8¢—to cash-fund four priority capital projects including Fire Station 5 and the Fleming Loop turf and pickleball courts. The board signaled general support; formal adoption is scheduled for June 1.
Town Manager Adam Mitchell told the Fuquay Varina Town Board during a budget workshop that the draft FY27 budget recommends adding 2¢ to the current property tax rate of 35.8¢ to support quality-of-life and public-safety capital projects. "This draft budget tonight recommends, adding 2¢ to the current property tax rate of 35.8¢ to support quality of life and public safety capital projects," Mitchell said.
Mitchell said the 2¢ increase would be dedicated to cash funding portions of four projects: converting Fleming Loop fields to turf and adding pickleball courts (a total project cost with grants estimated at roughly $10 million, including a $4.25 million Wake County hospitality-tax grant), renovating and expanding the South Park Community Center, constructing Kennebec Road Town Park, and acquiring land and beginning construction for a fifth fire station. He emphasized the town cannot move forward with those projects without the 2¢: "Without the 2¢ tax rate increase, the town cannot move forward with these projects," he said.
He presented the numbers: the FY27 recommended general fund operating budget is $83.3 million (an 8.4% increase over FY26), and the proposed tax rate increase would move the municipal rate from 35.8¢ to 37.8¢. On the example of an average in-town single-family home assessed at $456,000, Mitchell estimated the 2¢ would increase the municipal portion of the tax bill by about $92 a year — approximately $7.67 per month (a 5.6% increase on the town-only portion). "So for $7.67 per month, as a citizen, you will fund a fifth fire station," Mitchell said.
Mitchell framed the change as a cash-versus-debt decision. Advancing the increase now would allow roughly $8.5 million to be paid in cash toward capital projects and produce about $13.3 million in debt-service savings over 20 years. That combination, he said, translates into long-term savings and reduces future borrowing. He said the 2¢ would not pay for operating expenses and is strictly for capital and debt-service reduction.
Board members asked questions about priorities and whether any of the four projects could be deferred if members opposed the tax increase. Mitchell responded that the fire-station work was the most consequential to delay and that other projects could be reprioritized, but doing so would risk losing the $4.25 million hospitality-tax grant tied to Fleming Loop and the Wake County land commitment for Kennebec Road. Several commissioners indicated they were comfortable with the manager’s package as presented and asked the manager to present a recommended balanced budget at the board’s May 4 meeting and a public hearing on May 19; adoption is targeted for the June 1 meeting.
Mitchell asked the board for direction if any members could not support the 2¢ so staff could adjust preconstruction commitments. The workshop concluded with no formal vote on the proposal; the board recessed and will consider the manager’s recommended budget and any changes at the publicly noticed upcoming meetings.
Ending: The manager will present a recommended balanced FY27 budget on May 4; the town will hold a public hearing on the proposed budget May 19 and is scheduled to consider adoption of the budget ordinance on June 1.
