City Manager Lloyd Payne provided the Fiscal Year 2022 (FY22) budget recommendation to the Mayor and City Council on Friday. The proposed budget focuses on funding essential projects necessary to preserve, protect, and enhance the quality of life in a growing community.
“Concord continues to grow, and our aim is to ensure we are correctly positioned and have the resources available to handle this growth responsibly,” said City Manager Lloyd Payne. “Last year, we adjusted our budget during the uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic and today we are well positioned to meet future challenges while maintaining the existing high quality services our citizens expect and deserve.”
The city-wide budget totals $275,070,238 for all funds, including utilities and special revenue funds. The total represents an overall budget increase of 2.3% over the FY2021 adopted budget.
The recommended budget also continues to maintain the city’s low tax rate of 48 cents per $100 of valuation – the same rate since 2013. With this rate, the Concord property tax would be $1,027 for a home valued at $214,000.
In addition to low tax rates, the proposed budget maintains a healthy investment in projects that enhance the quality of life for residents. The recommendation continues to set aside one cent of the tax rate, or roughly $1.4 million, for Parks and Recreation projects to improve existing facilities and outdoor recreation opportunities. It also includes funding for a new park in Northwest Concord as well as improvements to Caldwell Park and WW Flowe Park. The budget also continues to set aside one cent of the tax rate for affordable housing as mandated by City Council.
As one of the fastest growing cities, to help protect quality of life the budget would fund a pedestrian improvement plan to create safer sidewalks throughout the city and also make needed improvements to major intersections such as Poplar Tent Road and Harris Road. The budget also includes funding to protect the city’s infrastructure both now and into the future - ensuring the community is well positioned to meet demand as the city grows.
Finally, the proposed budget includes rate increases necessary to preserve existing facilities and services. This includes a two-percent increase in water rates to meet the needs of a growing system, as well as a small increase to the solid waste fee to cover cost increases for recyclable processing from FY20 and FY21.
The City Council held a budget workshop following the April 6 work session, where Payne presented an overview of his recommendation and solicited feedback from the Mayor and Council. Council members will discuss the budget and hold a public hearing at the June 10 City Council meeting. Interested individuals can view the City Manager’s FY22 recommended budget online at concordnc.gov/budget and also in print at the City Clerk’s office.