By Chris Rotolo
While county commissioners adopted a 2022 budget that saw little change from the previous year’s totals, and no tax increase, the majority of Two River-area municipalities are nearing the conclusion of their own budgetary processes, certifying spending plans with a multitude of intriguing takeaways.
Shrewsbury Borough, Come On Down
If adopting a financial plan was in any way similar to the classic American gameshow “The Price is Right,” then Shrewsbury’s governing body would be playing Plinko after introducing a municipal tax levy exactly $1.78 less than what appeared in its 2021 budget.
Shrewsbury’s draft budget dropped the year-over-year tax rate from .6 to .556 in 2022 with a levy of $7,630,228, the slightest of decreases from the $7,630,229.78 levy approved a year ago.
The borough’s total proposed budget is estimated to reach $27.36 million, including a local school levy of $9.1 million, a regional high school levy of $6.78 million and a county levy of $3.12 million, all of which were slight increases compared to 2021.
The budget included targeted appropriations for roadway improvement projects, including $1 million for enhancements along Park Avenue and Crest Drive, another $270,000 for work along White Street, and an additional $600,000 for general roadway renovations. A $2 million appropriation was also listed for improvements to the borough’s public works building, a total that will be funded in future budgets.
Big Bucks On Big Trucks
The Atlantic Highlands Borough Council introduced a relatively flat municipal tax levy of $5.66 million in its 2022 budget, as part of an $8.99 million total municipal budget, which was down from the $9.22 million municipal spending plan from a year ago.
Included in the budget are $1.16 million in appropriations for a bucket truck ($85,000), a garbage truck ($250,000), a fire ladder truck ($250,000) and a general fire truck ($575,000) to be paid for with previously authorized debt.
A Roundup Of The Rest
Colts Neck: The township adopted its 2022 budget during the April 27 meeting of the committee, and saw its municipal tax levy rise nearly 10 percent from $8.28 million to $9.07 million. The increase will result in an additional $45.73 per average assessed home. The current average assessed home in Colts Neck is $914,605. The operating costs of the public works department received the largest year-over-year increase, jumping 40 percent from $1.8 million to $2.5 million.
Fair Haven: The borough council has introduced a 2022 budget with a slight year-over-year increase to its municipal tax levy, raising the total from $7.64 million in 2021 to $7.85 million. Residents are also expected to shoulder a local school levy of $16.43 million, a regional school levy of $6.14 million, and a county levy of $4.4 million.
Highlands: The governing body adopted a 2022 budget that focuses appropriations of $1 million each on the construction of a new municipal building and ongoing efforts to improve stormwater management infrastructure and roadways. Like the municipal building construction, widescale sewer improvements are expected to be completed. The latter is being funded by $6.8 million in appropriations, of which $6.7 million is previously authorized debt. In total, the borough council approved a $8.44 million municipal tax levy, which was down from the 2021 levy of $8.63 million.
Holmdel: The township committee adopted an $88.2 million spending plan that includes a $14.83 million municipal tax levy, resulting in a $265 decrease per average assessed Holmdel home.
Little Silver: Roadway and drainage improvements ($900,000), police, fire and EMS department equipment acquisitions ($645,000) and a property acquisition for a future affordable housing project ($470,000) were the most notable appropriations included in the $36.2 million spending plan introduced by the borough council. The budget includes a municipal tax levy of $8.13 million, a $15.02 million local school levy and $7.97 million regional school levy.
Monmouth Beach: The borough council introduced a $20.97 million spending plan that includes a $6.18 million municipal tax levy, a $5.2 million local school levy, a $5 million regional high school levy and a $4.6 million county levy. The budget showed a $1.35 million operations budget for the Monmouth Beach Bathing Pavilion, which was an increase from the $1.2 million appropriation in 2021. The plan also included a $4.47 million appropriation for roadway improvements ($2.47 million would be funded in future budgets), $1.43 million for the acquisition of DPW vehicles ($950,000 to be funded in future budgets), and a $400,000 appropriation for improvements to Griffin Park.
Middletown: The average home in Middletown is assessed at $530,000 and, according to the governing body’s introduced spending plan for 2022, the average assessed home will see a decrease of $201.48 in municipal taxes. The township committee will vote on a $254.7 million budget, which includes a $57.98 million tax levy, a $157.58 million local school levy and a $30.95 million county levy. The budget also included notable appropriations for roadway improvements ($13 million), EMO equipment and vehicle acquisitions ($6.33 million) and park improvements ($3 million). The majority of these appropriations will be funded in future budgets.
Oceanport: The borough council approved its budget April 21; a hearing on the resolution will be held at the regular mayor and council meeting May 19. Revenues are expected to be down slightly over last year. The borough anticipates addressing repairs to 1.7 miles of roadway in 2022, according to a letter from the mayor on the borough’s website. A user-friendly version of the budget had not been posted to the Oceanport website as of press time.
Red Bank and Rumson have not introduced their budgets yet.
This article originally appeared in the May 12-18, 2022 print edition of The Two River Times.
