Mayor Tom Henry Delivers State of City
By: Charlie De Mar
Updated: February 6, 2013
Mayor Tom Henry delivered his state of the city address this afternoon at the Allen County Public Library.
Among the many issues presented today, one that Mayor Henry hit on was the cities struggle to find funding for the services you expect.
"We're doing all that we can to make sure the kind of life that we have become accustomed to in Fort Wayne doesn't change," said Henry.
However, changes might inevitable as the mayor Henry's attempt to collect $6 million from property taxes failed, forcing him to dip into the legacy fund and cash reserves to avoid upping taxes.
"With the property tax caps that the state has in place now making it more and more difficult for cities to find ways to meet budgetary needs of the community," said Henry.
Henry says the city is loosing about 13 million dollars in annual property taxes. Adding that he's looking into new methods of collecting that lost revenue.
"We have to look at other ways of generating revenue. We are talking about fees and fines," said Henry.
The cities 2013 budget also called for a two percent increase for all city employees while money set aside for roads went underfunded.
"This year was challenging but I'm certain the state legislature is going to come out with some other revenue streams," said Henry.
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