Nov 26, 2014 3 min read

North Strabane officials plan to reduce the township’s real estate tax for the second time in three years while hiring several new police officers and firefighters.

Even with the tax cut, township officials unanimously passed their preliminary municipal budget Tuesday night that will increase overall spending by more than 10 percent with plans to hire three new police officers and two additional full-time firefighters.

The budget will be about $12.4 million in 2015 and taxpayers will see a 1-mill decrease, meaning the owner of a property with an assessed value of $40,000 will pay $40 less in taxes next year.

The nearly $1.2 million increase to the budget and tax cut will be paid for by an estimated surplus of $1.7 million in 2014. Another $500,000 will be put into a newly created building account township Manager Frank Siffrinn said is a “first down payment” toward eventually constructing a new municipal office complex.

“I think it says we’re doing extremely well from a cash flow perspective with the amount of construction and activity with the gas and oil industry, along with real estate growth,” Siffrinn said. “The township is postured going forward to be able to continue providing services and meeting increased costs associated with them.”

Siffrinn said taxes and fees from booming residential and commercial construction, in conjunction with an estimated $2.7 million in revenue in 2015 from The Meadows Casino, helped to offset the added spending. As the host community for the casino, the township received millions in gaming revenue since 2008.

The average homeowner will pay about $400 in township taxes next year.

“Any little bit (the township) can give back might be appreciated,” Siffrinn said. “I’m anticipating the same thing going forward in 2015 from what we know now in regards to development. We’re expecting it’s going to be every bit as good over the next few years.”

The biggest expenditure will be for the township’s police department, which will expand to 22 officers, including a new canine handler. The township expects to spend about $3.13 million of its force that is more than 17 percent higher than last year.

Another $1.47 million will be spent on the fire department, and the township is planning to hire two more full-time firefighters. The public works will spend $1.57 million in 2015, which is a 4 percent decrease due to the elimination of a laborer position that has remained unfilled for three years.

The township does not plan to hire a new parks and recreation director to replace Greg Sulc, who held that position until resigning in March. The department’s $290,000 budget does not include a salary for a new director.

The supervisors are expected to vote on the township’s final budget next month.