Hold on to your wallet | Letter

Published 8:00 am Friday, May 6, 2016

Mercer Island taxpayers soon will be facing multiple demands for their tax dollars in addition to the recent raises in fees we have experienced. The council has been discussing a raise in the levy lid.

We have a forecast budget shortfall and are still facing unfunded road and public safety needs. The levy lid raise may be unavoidable.

Looming this fall is Sound Transit 3. The transit cost to taxpayers on the Eastside has been estimated by the Washington Policy Council to be $2,300 per annum (no doubt higher for Mercer Island). Several school districts in the region to be taxed by Sound Transit have expressed the fear that such an increase in taxes will hurt their ability to raise funds. Kirkland has paid $400 million to Sound Transit. This is equal to the entire budget of the Lake Washington School District. Kirkland has received nothing in return.

This potential negative effect on schools must be considered along with the impact of the McCleary case and the pending Washington state school levy swap. In simplest terms, this “swap” will involve school districts with high property valuations subsidizing those with lower valuations. The latest iteration has 123 school districts raising taxes and 171 school districts lowering taxes. The initial increase in property taxes for the average Mercer Island home is estimated to be $1,612.

The next elephant in the room is Mercer Island Center for the Arts ( MICA). We are told that with the exception of the donation of $10 million in land, there will be no public funds required. In their application for a grant, MICA lists a $2 million capital contribution from the city of Mercer Island and includes a line (blank) for city contributions to annual operating expenses. The shortfall between income as projected and expenses as projected is approximately $300,000 per annum.

I fear the income projections are overstated and the expense projections are understated. We live in a budget constrained environment, yet propose a $25 million facility when Bellevue’s Youth Theater will cost $8.8 million. (The Tateuchi Center in Bellevue is on a grander scale and will checkmate MICA). Proper scale is necessary and under no circumstances should land be leased at below market rates.

The City Council must prioritize expenditures and consider just how many bites can be taken from the tax base.

Carv Zwingle

Mercer Island