Sunday, May 19, 2013
Trustees will discuss a new user fee to help pay for fire protection services that is currently part of the property taxes property owners pay to the village each year.
Trustees will discuss Monday the impact of taking fire protection out of the tax levy and charge a fee instead. Currently, only water service users pay into the system the fire department uses to put out fires in the village, about $65. The fire protection charge does not include the cost of the firefighters and firefighting equipment, which is paid for in the village’s budget. But, if the Public Service Commission (PSC) approves the new fee, all village property owners will pay into the system, including non-profit and tax-exempt properties and those who use a well. Last month, the village board approved a motion to allow staff to submit the change to the PSC.
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
Caledonia trustees will vote Monday on a new wholesale water agreement with Racine that makes business development possible along two major roadways that lead to I-94.
The ability to effectively compete with neighboring communities for incoming business development could rest on whether or not trustees approve a new, 40-year water agreement with the Racine Water Utility. Without the contract, water service will continue to Caledonia, but the potential to expand—like running water along Highway K and 7 Mile Road out to I-94—gets shut off. Bob Bradley, a commissioner with the Caledonia Water Utility, said the contract is really just an extension of the one that recently expired. Like the water agreement the village has with the City of Oak Creek to service the village north of 5 Mile Road, the contract with the city is a 40-year wholesale agreement for areas south of 5 Mile. Wholesale customers buy water …
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
Mark Janiuk, the new village administrator, put together his first preliminary budget for the village. He blasted the water and sewer utility for asking the village for more money when it should be supported by user rates.
Ratepayers could see their fees increase next year to help fund projects in the village's sewer utility district. Caledonia's 2013 preliminary budget focuses on keeping village services at status quo with a tax levy increase of less than 1 percent — but Village administrator Mark Janiuk strongly opposed a request from the sewer and water utility department for more tax money, which could mean extra charges for individual users. Janiuk presented his first budget to the Village Board on Monday night, and called for an outside review of the utility department to "see what options the village has in regards to these services," after the department asked for a levy increase from the village. Janiuk also chastised utility officials for not …
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
And look at it from a personal view.
They say the only thing that is certain in life is death and taxes. The latter has been source of angst and dismay for many of us. We’re tired of paying them, don’t see the purpose of them and don’t see the value of the services delivered by our Village, state, schools, county and utilities. While I can’t and won’t have anything to say about the politics surrounding our spending habits, I think we have an obligation to understand them. Property taxes (you’ll likely be receiving the bill in the mail tomorrow) are one of the largest sources of angst for us. Rather than writing a formal news story about your tax bill (which I’ll probably end up doing anyway), I thought I’d go another direction and show you my tax bills. I could bore you with …
Frances Martin
10:05 am on Monday, May 20, 2013
even though I have a well and this will up my tax burden, it seems fair to me ; but before I jump on board I'll have to see how the fee is calculated. more ›