04/2017 Mayor's Corner APRIL 2017
Message from the Mayor
Our Challenge Funding Essential Services
Tax season may not be your favorite time of year, but for me it is the busiest season. As
many of you may know, I am a certified public accountant and work with people every day
to help them plan for their financial future.
In the same way families plan their financial future, the City of Tigard is in the process of
planning and budgeting for its future. And, like you, when we set the city budget, we need
to balance the community's priorities and needs. Our city is growing, but our income is not
growing at the same rate, which makes the budgeting process more difficult every year.
Our infrastructure is aging, and the demand for city services, such as street improvements
or hiring more police officers, is increasing at a rate faster than the revenue we receive from
funding sources, such as property taxes and developer fees. This means that the city is
consistently challenged to maintain our current levels of service.
Though you may not notice it now, Tigard's day-to-day service levels are steadily declining.
If we continue on our current financial path, this erosion will become more and more
evident.
This is why one of our City Council goals is to explore the possibility of a local option levy to
maintain funding for core city services. In the coming months, we will continue to educate
ourselves on the community's needs. Along the way, I will do my best to explain how city
services are funded as well as possible outcomes of bringing a local option levy to you, our
voters. Stay tuned.
My next "Fireside Chat with the Mayor" is on Thursday, April 6, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at
Symposium Coffee, 12345 SW Main St.
My April quote of the month is by Albert Einstein on filing tax returns, "This is too difficult
for a mathematician. It takes a philosopher."