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Town manager urges 2¢ property-tax increase to fund parks, public-safety projects
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Summary
Fuquay Varina Town Manager Adam Mitchell proposed a balanced FY27 budget that includes a 2¢ property-tax rate increase to cash-fund four priority capital projects—Fleming Loop turf and pickleball courts, South Park Community Center renovation, Kennebec Road Town Park and land/construction for Fire Station 5—and to reduce long-term debt service costs.
Town Manager Adam Mitchell on Thursday presented a draft fiscal year 2027 budget and five-year plan for Fuquay Varina that would raise the municipal property-tax rate by 2¢, from 35.8¢ to 37.8¢, to cash-fund four priority quality-of-life and public-safety capital projects.
Mitchell told the town board the $83.3 million general fund budget is balanced and that the proposed 2¢ increase is dedicated solely to capital projects and debt-service savings, not day-to-day operations. “The 2¢ allows us to cash fund a majority of these projects versus borrowing the full amount, thereby saving the town on that debt service,” Mitchell said.
The tax proposal would support four projects Mitchell identified as priorities: Fleming Loop turf conversion and six outdoor pickleball courts (estimated total project cost $10.5 million, including a $4.25 million Wake County hospitality-tax grant), renovation and expansion of the South Park Community Center, development of the Kennebec Road Town Park, and land purchase and construction for Fire Station No. 5. Mitchell said advancing cash funding where possible reduces the town’s long-term borrowing and estimated debt-service costs by about $13.3 million over 20 years.
Why it matters: Mitchell emphasized that the board has previously prioritized these projects and that moving the tax increase into FY27 reduces the cumulative increases the town would otherwise face over the five-year plan. He gave a homeowner example to describe the local impact: for an average Fuquay Varina house valued at about $456,000, the 2¢ increase would raise town-only taxes by roughly $92 a year, or about $7.67 per month.
Board members asked questions throughout the presentation about pacing, which projects are most essential and the long-term financial implications. The manager flagged Fire Station No. 5 as the most sensitive to delay, saying deferring it would risk the town’s ISO rating and response-time standards. Several commissioners expressed support for the manager’s overall plan and for the approach of advancing some funding now to lower longer-term costs.
Other budget highlights included a proposed $1.2 million for street resurfacing and $450,000 for annual sidewalk repairs (an increase from prior annual sidewalk allocations of about $200,000), a $1.5 million one-time general-fund balance appropriation for temporary Pineywoods Park improvements, and 14 net new general-fund full-time equivalent positions (21 townwide) tied to the town’s growing service needs. Mitchell also proposed a 3% market cost-of-living adjustment and up to a 3% merit pool for employees.
What’s next: Mitchell said he will present a recommended balanced budget to the town board on May 4 and that the formal public budget hearing is scheduled for May 19; adoption of the budget ordinance is proposed for the June 1 meeting. The board took no formal vote on the tax increase at Thursday’s workshop.
(Attribution: Town Manager Adam Mitchell; summary based on the FY27 draft budget presentation and board Q&A.)
