LOVELAND HERALD
Your Community Press newspaper serving Loveland, Miami Township, Symmes Township
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 2, 2013
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Loveland biting fiscal bullet Tax levy defeat’s consequences to be felt in 2013
By Jeanne Houck jhouck@communitypress.com
LOVELAND — City officials say that if you live or work in Loveland, you can expect in 2013 to see fewer municipal employees, more snow piled on winter roads and no fireworks in the sky on the Fourth of July. Loveland already has made budget cuts to close half of a $1.1 million general fund deficit the city expects to have in 2014. With voters rejecting a proposed hike in the income tax rate in November, more are coming. Loveland’s budget has been gutted by the loss of state funds due to the elimination of the estate tax in 2013, the phase out of the tangible personal property tax and a reduction in Local Government Fund monies. To add insult to injury, county property valuations have dropped. “The 2013 Loveland budget accelerates cost cutting started in 2010,” Tom Carroll, Loveland city manager, said. “Next year, we will eliminate two positions – a street worker and the assistant city manager – and will eliminate 3.5 police positions in 2014. “These are hard cuts to make, especially since the city has already cut its work force by 10 percent since 2010,” Carroll said. “Yet, Loveland voters made it clear they do not want their taxes raised. “In addition to layoffs in 2013 and 2014, the city will be cutting back its snow removal, cancelling cultural activities like the Fourth of July fireworks and concert and reducing road repairs,” Carroll said. Loveland will continue working in 2013 to develop Loveland Station, a retail-office-residential project planned for South Second
Loveland police back up firefighters checking out the report of a trash can fire that may have spread to a house on Wittenberg Drive. Loveland plans to cut 3.5 police positions in 2014. JEANNE HOUCK/THE COMMUNITY PRESS Street and West Loveland Avenue. The city also devised a way to finance the construction in 2013 of a second water tower at the Loveland Commerce Park using financing that allows Loveland to make minimal debt payments until 2019, when other debt the city issued in1997 and1998 will be paid off. Overall, however, the outlook is rather glum. “Much of Loveland’s agenda in 2013 will be adapting service levels to the reduced financial and human resources (conditions),” Carroll said. “I think doing less with less is actually going to be harder than doing more with less because it involves telling people, ‘I am sorry, but I cannot help you with this issue.’ “Our employees are so dedicated that we will hate saying no, but our organization has become so lean that we have to stop doing certain things that many residents expect us to do,” Carroll said.
The sight of plows like this will become less frequent in Loveland, which is cutting its snow removal services in 2013 and 2014. BY JEANNE HOUCK/THE COMMUNITY PR
The Loveland City Schools knew the financial hits were coming and planned accordingly, district Treasurer Brett Griffith said. “There are no real budget sur-
prises for Loveland City Schools because we anticipated the changes in revenue and built them into our five-year forecast,” Griffith said. “Regarding the phase-out of
Loveland finances new Commerce Park water tower: Price, $3.68M By Jeanne Houck jhouck@communitypress.com
LOVELAND — Loveland City Council has agreed to issue nearly $3.68 million-worth of bonds to finance water system improvements that include construction of a second water tower in the Loveland Commerce Park in 2013. City council voted Dec. 18 to take out a 25-year loan with “wrap” financing that will allow Loveland to make minimal debt payments until 2019, when other debt the city issued in 1997 and 1998 will be paid off.
DREAM TEAM B1 Grailville has joined a worldwide movement to make Loveland sustainable.
Residential and commercial water customers should expect 4-percent rate hikes from 2014 to 2018. “By taking advantage of the current low cost of funds and borrowing money to refurbish and maintain infrastructure, the city addresses cash flow concerns and helps protect its capital assets,” Loveland City Manager Tom Carroll said. Loveland City Council voted in September to buy 1.1 acres of property on Union Cemetery Road for a second water tower in the Loveland Commerce Park.
The tower will be a 1-milliongallon elevated affair for which construction bids are to be opened in March. The $3.68-million bond issue city council approved Dec. 18 is to pay for construction of the new water tower, the Union Cemetery Road land on which the tower will be built, building a new booster pump station on city land in Boike Park off Rich Road, repainting the existing 500,000-gallon Loveland Commerce Park water tower and maintenance of other water system assets such as water-storage tanks.
MEN OF MOELLER Moeller High School honored alumni and distinguished guests at the President’s Dinner See Schools, A5
Consultants have said not enough water is stored in the Loveland Commerce Park area, which includes 43 light-industrial facilities in the park, Loveland Middle School, two daycare facilities, four churches, one nursing home, a portion of the Loveland-Madeira Road business district and some 2,100 homes. For more about your community, visit www.Cincinnati.com/Loveland. Get regular Loveland updates by signing up for our email newsletter. Visit Cicinnati.com/Loveland.
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the tangible personal property taxes, we lost $1.2 million over the last two fiscal years. “Of the 3.5 mills that were placed on the ballot in 2011, approximately 1.5 mills was to cover this loss of the tangible personalproperty taxes,” Griffith said. “Because of the lower property values we lost about $150,000 per year.” Griffith said the Loveland City Schools expects to stay on a frugal financial course. “Loveland (City Schools) made a commitment to the community that the 2011 levy would serve as a bridge to 2014; our district will keep that promise even with declining revenues from the state and federal sources,” Griffith said. “Our district is successful because we look for every opportunity to manage expenses.” Some ways the district does that, Griffith said, is by planning staffing decisions on a yearly basis, firmly managing benefits See FISCAL, Page A2
Miami Twp. trustees OK 2013 budget MIAMI TWP. — The trustees Dec. 18 approved an operating budget for 2013 of $19.2 million. Administrator Larry Fronk said the 2013 budget represents a increase of only $6,600 over the 2012 budget. “Given this new era of decreasing revenue, each department has presented a conservative budget with a goal of providing efficient service at the lowest possible cost and maintaining adequate reserves for future years,” Fronk said. He said the budget anticipates declining revenue in local govern-
See BUDGET, Page A2 Vol. 94 No. 43 © 2013 The Community Press ALL RIGHTS RESERVED