Proposition 3 - Building Maintenance and Park Improvements
The following Frequently Asked Questions has been prepared to provide additional information to the public and to answer questions about the Building Maintenance and Park Improvement levy.
Q: What exactly would Proposition 3 provide for?
A: Proposition 3, if approved by a majority of Edmonds voters, would temporarily raise the local portion of property taxes by approximately 8.6 cents per $1,000 of assessed valuation which is estimated to provide $500,000 each year for a three-year period to provide building maintenance and park improvements in Edmonds. See attached table listing the projects targeted for completion if this property tax passes.
Q: What else could the money be used for?
A: Proposition 3 limits the use of funds raised to building maintenance and park improvements only.
Q: What would this cost an average Edmonds homeowner?
A: According to the Snohomish County Assessor, the average Edmonds home is valued at $375,000 in 2011. The $0.086 voted increase would add $32.35 to the annual tax bill for this average home. The estimated total 2012 property tax bill for this same home would be approximately $3,750. Proposition 2 would increase that by $32.35 or 0.8%.
Q: Why is the City putting this measure on the ballot at this time?
A: A majority of the Edmonds City Council voted to give citizens an opportunity to decide whether or not to pay for deferred maintenance issues in city buildings and parks.
Q: What types of projects does Proposition 3 seek to fund?
A: The current project list is attached and speaks for itself but the individual projects are typically major maintenance projects like roof and gutter replacements, maintenance at the Edmonds Senior Center, playground equipment replacement (safety), radiator replacements at the Anderson community center (energy conservation), environmental projects such as asbestos removal and buried oil tank removal, better trash containers downtown (litter control), painting, resurfacing of floors, field turf, pathways, and building facades, and several other major maintenance activities.
Q. Why aren’t the funds to complete these major maintenance projects already in the City’s budget?
A. The current budgets for Parks and Facilities (City Buildings) include just enough money to do basic maintenance. This includes mowing, pruning, fertilizing, painting, minor repairs, paying utility bills for gas, electric, sewer, water, and stormwater. We can do almost any activity that can be accomplished using our existing staff and equipment. The special skill sets and equipment required to complete the projects on the attached list do not exist within the City’s current employee and equipment inventories. That means we need to either add staff or contract for this work. We do not currently have the available resources to do either.
Q: What will happen if Proposition 3 fails to receive voter approval?
A: If no additional funding is made available very few projects on the attached list will be completed during the next several years. This means old roofing will start to leak and need to be spot repaired with the potential of structural deterioration underneath, locations that currently are inaccessible to handicapped citizens will remain so, asbestos will continue to be present in the Anderson Center and will require frequent attention and monitoring, emergency repairs and possible abatement projects, possibly impacting use of multiple areas in the center. Current playground equipment will remain in service until safety concerns get to a point where the equipment will need to be removed. Once removed it will not be replaced. Basketball and tennis courts won’t be resurfaced and will begin to spall and crack, allowing water to enter the surface causing additional damage and increasing future maintenance costs and possibly force closure. In short, without additional funding, City parks and public buildings will continue to decline in their overall condition. This deterioration will, over time, seriously and negatively affect the services provided by those buildings, play areas, and equipment.
PROPOSITION 3 LEVY INFORMATION TABLE
| PROJECT NAME | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | |
| Facilities | Anderson Center ADA Improvements | $40,000 |
$85,000 |
|
| Anderson Center Interior Painting | ||||
| Anderson Center Radiator Replacement | $110,000 |
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| Anderson Center Exterior Repairs | $40,000 |
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| Anderson Center Asbestos Abatement | $50,000 |
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| Anderson Center Flooring/Gym | $40,000 | |||
| Anderson Center Oil Tank Decommissioning | $30,000 |
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| Anderson Center Roof Replacement | $200,000 |
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| City Hall Security Measures | $20,000 |
|||
| Fire Station #20 Stairs and Deck Replacement | $35,000 |
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| Meadowdale Clubhouse Roof Replacement | $15,000 |
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| Meadowdale Clubhouse Gutter Replacement | $10,000 |
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| Meadowdale Clubhouse Fire Alarm Replacement | $25,000 |
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| Senior Center Misc Repairs & Maintenance | $10,000 |
$10,000 |
$10,000 |
|
| Parks | Playground replacements | $100,000 |
$100,000 |
$100,000 |
| Park restroom restoration | $25,000 |
$25,000 |
||
| Park pathway improvements | $5,000 |
$25,000 |
$5,000 |
|
| Replacement of downtown trash containers | $25,000 |
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| Field turf rehabilitation | $90,000 |
$90,000 |
$90,000 |
|
| Tennis and Basketball court resurfacing | $30,000 |
$30,000 |
$30,000 |
|
| Total | $500,000 |
$500,000 |
$500,000 |