Silver Lake City Council has tax hearing

A wide variety of issues was raised at the Silver Lake city council meeting Monday night, including budget concerns, fair pay for women and a potential public access channel for the city.

Truth in Taxation
The truth in taxation hearing took place at the top of the meeting’s agenda. City Clerk Kerry Venier reported that the 2015 tax levy will be decreased by .29 percent, or $1,349. Budget expenditures will increase by 3.5 percent, projected revenues will increase by 3.52 percent.
Some expenses discussed were the general government fund and the water fund. The general government fund was used for the repair of water damage on one of the ceilings, with a projected cost of an additional $5,000 if the city offices get moved to a new location. The water fund is in a deficit and will remain there for a few years as these funds were used to put in hydrants.
City workers wage decrease will be .6 percent, and the health insurance increase will be 10.87 percent. A resolution was passed to adopt the budget and tax levy.
Public Access
The city of Lester Prairie approached the city asking if there were any interest in taking over the Lester Prairie public access channel. Lester Prairie recently spent several thousand dollars to update its equipment, but would be willing to sell all of its equipment for $4,000.
Council Member Eric Nelson pointed out that systems like these need to be in a very climate-controlled environment, and asked if Silver Lake could we realistically take on this project in light of the temperature needs.
“This project would be a pure expense, with no revenue,” said Mayor Bruce Bebo, “so why would we want to do this?”
After discussion the group decided to look at more information before making a decision, and Venier will acquire more details for the next For more from the meeting, see the Dec. 17 print edition of The Chronicle.