The Niagara Falls City Council reworked Mayor Robert Restaino’s proposed $101 million-plus 2025 city budget Monday night, slashing an increase in funding for the library and re-directing that cash to the “continued planning and development of Beech Avenue Park.”
In a series of unanimous votes, the council members also re-directed a portion of the proposed library funding to increase the proposed salary for a City Council secretary and to pay for what was described as an “unfunded” insurance buyout for three members.
The council also voted to cut the salary for the vacant position of City Public Information Officer in half, taking the $27,000 in savings and transferring the funds to their budget.
The amended budget must now be transmitted to Restaino before Dec. 2. After that, the mayor will have five working days to either accept or veto the budget amendments.
If Restaino issues any vetoes, the council will have until Dec. 15 to override the vetoes and send the budget back to the mayor.
The proposed $101,644,324 spending plan had included $133,264 in increased funding for the Falls library.
“That was a big increase,” council member Traci Bax (R) said, while noting that the city will continue to provide $1.96 million for the downtown and LaSalle libraries.
After eliminating the increase, the council reallocated $118,604 to its budget to fund additional work on the proposed Beech Avenue Park. In an effort to fill a vacant position for a council secretary, the members added $4,116 to the currently budgeted salary of $12,000.
“We wanted to increase (the pay) to $20 an hour to try to attract candidates,” Council Chair Jim Perry (D) said.
The council also added $10,500 to insurance expenses in the budget to provide for buyouts for two members who are eligible for but not currently receiving them.
Council Member Donta Myles (D) said the $27,000 taken from the public information officer’s position in the mayor’s office, and transferred to an undesignated funds line in the council’s proposed budget, would “give us something to work with if we need legal counsel or other things.”
The council’s budget amendments do not change the bottom line of the mayor’s proposed spending plan, which reflects roughly half a million dollars in increased spending, offset by a similar projected increase in revenue.
What the mayor has described as a “sharp decrease” in the value of Non-Homestead (business) properties combined with a modest increase in the value of Homestead (residential) properties would lead to a hike in residential property taxes.
Taxes for residential properties will increase by 54 cents per $1,000 assessed valuation. Taxes for business properties will drop by $1.50 per $1,000 assessed valuation.
The roughly 2.8% hike in 2025 residential property taxes follows a 3.1% reduction in those taxes in 2024. An average home, assessed at $100,000, would see a property tax increase of $54.
A business property, assessed at $100,000, would see its property tax bill decrease by $150 under the proposed budget. There is no change in the tax levy.
The budget also calls for spending $31 million on capital projects, with the largest portion of that, $14 million, going to improvements at municipal buildings and facilities. It also calls for equipment purchases for police, fire and public works and for repairs to 87th Street.