Clarkdale presents FY2027 budget with proposed levy increase; tentative adoption set for May 26

Britney Earls, presenting the town’s proposed fiscal year 2027 budget on May 12, asked the council to approve a tentative budget schedule that includes a recommended property-tax levy up to $800,000 to address uncertainty in shared revenues and other state-level changes.

Earls said the recommended levy would result in an increase of $10.79 per $100,000 in net assessed value and provided two example properties to illustrate household impacts: a median Main Street home would see an approximate annual increase of $19.79, and a new home in the Mountain Gate area would see an approximate annual increase of $28.66. The presentation emphasized that Clarkdale receives roughly 11% of a resident’s overall property-tax bill and that the levy increase is intended to shore up town operations amid uncertain revenue forecasts.

The proposed budget includes a $3.9 million capital-improvement program, with $1.8 million from the general fund, roughly $3.29 million expected from grants, and just under $5 million from enterprise funds, and staff noted $17 million in grant awards over the past four years. Staff also described personnel-cost savings of about $80,000 arising from restructuring and a 5% cost-of-living or market adjustment included for current staff.

Earls walked the council through contingency planning (a 31% contingency allocation to meet a six-month operating recommendation) and explained that truth-in-taxation notices and hearings are already being posted; the tentative budget will be considered May 26 and the final budget adoption is scheduled for June 23, 2026.

Councilmembers complimented the clarity of the materials and the conservative approach to revenue assumptions. No final action was taken at the May 12 meeting; the presentation initiated the statutory process for public hearings on the proposed levy.