Lighthouse Point proposes flat millage, balanced FY2027 budget with infrastructure focus

Finance Director Olympio presented the City of Lighthouse Point’s proposed fiscal year 2027 budget at a special workshop, saying the operating millage would remain at 4.4207 and that higher property valuations would provide additional ad valorem revenue. Olympio told commissioners the proposed rate exceeds the rollback rate of 4.1784 and therefore must be advertised as a tax increase; she estimated the difference would produce roughly $1,100,000 in new budgeted revenue.

Olympio also said the debt service millage would fall from 0.2492 to 0.2373 because higher assessed values reduce the levy needed to meet debt obligations; that yields a combined millage of about 4.658 versus 4.6699 in the current year. She cautioned that assessed values can still change with final certification from the Broward County property appraiser and value‑adjustment board outcomes, which could alter revenues before the budget is finalized.

The presentation laid out revenue composition and notable spending changes. Ad valorem taxes account for roughly 61.8% of general fund revenue; utility service taxes, fire protection assessments, intergovernmental grants (including a planned Florida Inland Navigation District grant), franchise fees, permits and charges for services make up the remainder. The proposed budget does not rely on the use of fund balance or contingency for general operations.

On the expenditure side, the budget includes estimated pay increases for expiring bargaining units and several department adjustments: city administration reflects a 41.5% increase tied to a planned assistant city administrator/building director position and a new vehicle; police spending rises roughly 14.6% for patrol vehicles, boat engines, radios and building repairs; the fire department increases about 8% with capital earmarked and a $300,000 transfer toward a future engine expected in FY2028. The building department’s proposed budget drops about 40% as prior‑year construction costs for repurposing the old fire station fall out of the projection. The tennis center line shows a sizeable reduction tied to project timing.

Olympio described transfers and capital allocations: $446,041 is proposed to move to the infrastructure fund to support canal dredging; $1,248,494 is proposed for a bridge fund for future replacements. For stormwater, the assessment is proposed to remain $300 per equivalent stormwater unit; planned master‑plan construction for one area is estimated at about $2,554,000 with an additional $25,000 to complete design for another area. With those projects, staff said the stormwater fund would need to apply approximately $1,700,000 of fund balance to balance the FY2027 stormwater budget.

Commissioners pressed staff for context about broader fiscal risk. During public comment and Q&A, resident Tom Gallagher asked whether the commission had modeled the impact of a proposed homestead exemption amendment; staff responded that current projections show an approximate $1,400,000 revenue loss in FY2027 should the amendment pass and as much as $3,000,000 in FY2028, and that the city would then have to consider raising millage, reducing services, switching project designs, or borrowing.

No formal votes or policy decisions were taken during the workshop; commissioners debated priorities for capital spending, potential use of infrastructure reserves and grant pursuit, and requested that some details—such as final property valuations and waste‑management assessment rates—be brought back in upcoming meetings. The city will advertise the proposed millage as required and continue the budget process at regular meetings in July, including presenting finalized assessment calculations for garbage and trash.