OCTOBER 5, 2011 WEST NEWSMAGAZINE
NEWSMAGAZINENETWORK.COM
I NEWS I 15
Rockwood School District officials listen to discussions before they vote on a tax rate for 2011. Pictured (from left) are School Board Vice President Janet Strate, Superintendent Bruce Borchers, and School Board President Steve Smith. (West Newsmagazine photo)
Slide in property value leads to increase in Rockwood tax rate By MARCIA GUCKES Sliding property values have resulted in an almost 19-cents increase in the 2011 tax rate for Rockwood School District residents. The Rockwood Board of Education at a tax hearing on Sept. 26 approved a tax levy rate of $4.4630 for the 2011-2012 school year. The 2010 rate was $4.2752. Rockwood Chief Financial Officer Shirley Broz told the board that the average homeowner will see an increase of about $49 in their real estate tax bill. She said that a house that was assessed at $250,000 has dropped in value by 1.9 percent so its value is now $245,309. Broz told the board that the tax rate
increase would net the school district about the same amount of tax revenue that it received in 2010. So a school district can maintain the same revenue income it had the previous year, Missouri state law allows a district to raise its tax levy when the district’s property values drop. About 50 people attended the tax rate hearing. One board member commented that they had not had such a large crowd at tax hearing for the last 15 years. Three people addressed the board. All of them urged the board to set a tax rate that would maintain what one person called “the world class education” that the district provides for its students.
Wildwood Mayor Tim Woerther and city councilmembers break ground at the site of the new Wildwood City Hall and Police facility. (West Newsmagazine photo)
Wildwood breaks ground on City Hall By SARAH WILSON The Wildwood City Council has broken ground on the new Wildwood City Hall and police facility. City leaders on Sept. 26 hosted a groundbreaking ceremony at the new site of the development, which is located on cityowned property along Main Street, just west of the B&B Theatres in the Wildwood Town Center. K & S Associates, Inc. was awarded the construction contract. Construction of the new facility is expected to take approxi-
mately 18 months, with occupancy planned for the first quarter of 2013. The building will be designed and constructed to Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) “Green Building” standards. Wildwood voters authorized the construction of a new city hall and police facility in April 2010, with the overall cost for the project not to exceed $8 million. Funding for the city hall project will come from $3 million in capital lease financing notes issued this past fall, and up to $5 million in cash contributed from city reserves. RIV_1172_BestVIP_WNM_AD.indd 1
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