By Kevin Boneske
Staff Writer
HOBART – The village has exceeded $1 billion in equalized property value, based on preliminary numbers from the State of Wisconsin, Village Administrator Aaron Kramer reported Aug. 18 to the Hobart village board.
“The news I gave you tonight, I think, is a fairly significant number,” Kramer said. “We are now officially a $1 billion community in terms of our property tax base (of nearly $1.057 billion). That is a 9 percent increase over last year and the first time our tax base has ever exceeded $1 billion.”
Kramer said the latest rise in equalized value of nearly $85 million is larger than the increases in 2019 ($75.5 million) and 2018 ($79.6 million.
He said the majority of the village’s equalized value is residential ($813 million), followed by commercial ($185 million) and industrial ($35 million).
Kramer said the equalized valued, which doubled since 2003, has also gone up by around $250 million since 2017.
“Of the $1.057 billion in total equalized value, $778 million is outside of the TIDs (tax increment districts),” he said. “That’s what you apply your general fund levy to build the budget.”
For the third year in a row, Kramer said growth in the village’s tax base outside of the two TIDs exceeded 5 percent.
He said the 5.7 percent growth outside the TIDs for 2020 is the largest percentage growth since the TIDs were created.
Kramer said the dollar amount of growth inside and outside the TIDs in 2020 was nearly equal with about $42 million outside and $42.9 million inside.
“It was a very good balance for us,” he said.
Kramer said TID No. 1, which is Centennial Centre, has an equalized valve in 2020 of nearly $219 million, 16 percent higher than the previous year.
“Since its creation in 2009, the TID has seen an increase now of $198 million in tax base,” he said.
Kramer said TID No. 2 has an equalized value of nearly $84 million, an increase of 17 percent from the previous year.
“Since its creation, the TID has seen an increase of $80 million in value,” he said.
Kramer said financial figures on equalized value provided by the state Department of Revenue are preliminary numbers, which usually don’t change before being finalized.
“The message I want you to get tonight is, if you keep everything the same as it was (with the property tax rate), you’ve got additional taxes just from natural growth,” he said. “TID No. 1 right now, if everything were frozen, would have almost $200,000 more in increment. Outside the TID, it’s somewhere between $40,000 and $45,000.”
Kramer said the increase in equalized value will provide the village more flexibility in budgeting for next year.
“The TIDs are both on an excellent glide pattern to be able do a little bit more yet before their expenditure periods close out…,” he said. “Both TIDs, I think, have met their objectives of when you created them, and then some, far surpassing it.”
Village President Rich Heidel said the first objective of TID No. 1 was to overcome whatever the village might be losing in tax revenue from land going into trust by the Oneida Nation.
“We passed that objective a long time ago,” he said.
Heidel said he found it interesting the dollar amount of growth in the non-TID areas of the village “rivals that which is going on in the TID.”
“You expect the TIDs to grow,” he said. “That’s what they’re for.”
Liquor license
Kramer also informed the board D2’s of Hobart has submitted a new Class B combination license application for consideration by the board at its Sept. 1 meeting.
Village Clerk-Treasurer Erica Berger said D2 is applying for the fifth and final regular Class B license in the village, which also has the more expensive reserve licenses available at $10,000 each.
Recycling agreement
The board approved an amended municipal recycling agreement with Brown County.
The amendment ensures the village’s eligibility for the 2021 Wisconsin Recycling Consolidation Grant.