You can watch the mayor’s entire presentation by clicking on the video link above.
“Financially we’re in good shape now,” Mayor Dave Earling told attendees at the Edmonds Chamber of Commerce luncheon Thursday, “but there are some worries longer term, that we need to at least be thinking about and perhaps trying to resolve.”
Earling went on to discuss possible ways to address a situation that has been predicted by the city’s past three finance directors: Edmonds is likely to face a financial downturn as early as 2017, and will need to find new revenue sources to address that problem.
Of course, the mayor noted, the city is committed to ongoing economic development and has a strong focus these days on the city’s Highway 99 neighborhood, which already brings in the lion’s share of the city’s sales tax money, mostly thanks to a number of car dealerships. The goal is to “create a personality for Highway 99” that also incorporates the area’s burgeoning International District, the mayor said. He cited the recent redevelopment of Highway 99 in Shoreline, just south of Edmonds, as an example of what can be done to make an area more attractive. That also will reduce crime, the mayor said, noting that the Edmonds Police Department spends much of its time on the Edmonds stretch of Highway 99.
Even though Highway 99 deserves a facelift, the mayor released new figures Thursday that show Highway 99 businesses contributed $2.33 million in sales tax to the city in 2014, up from $1.59 million in 2012. Downtown Edmonds businesses, by comparison, generated $578,000 in sales tax in 2014, but that number is up significantly from the $270,000 in 2012.
Still, the city is likely to need other revenue sources in the next few years to relieve the ongoing pressure on the general fund for necessities like long-delayed street paving, Earling said.
Among the ideas that Edmonds officials may be considering in the long term — all requiring a public participation process and voter approval — are:
– Formation of a Metropolitan Parks District, basically a separate levy dedicated to parks-related maintenance and operations.
– A possible levy for road funding, with a set duration — for example, three or five years.
– Asking the state for help to increase the city’s property tax limit, currently at 1 percent — which brings in $98,000 — to 2 percent; or to increase the current Transportation Benefit District fee — assessed when you pay your vehicle license tabs — from $20 per car to $40. That latter increase would generate an additional $700,000 annually in revenue.
“Those are only ideas; I’m not advocating for any particular one,” Earling said. “Nonetheless, it is something we need — I think — to start talking about as a community.”
Thank you, Teresa, for making this video available. Where was the luncheon held?
Forgot to mention that — Copper Pot Indian Restaurant