Budget Hearing Tonight at Village Hall

Scarsdale residents, you have been warned: When the tax burden for living in such a beautiful, bucolic town with wonderful amenities rises for the coming year to just over 8 percent (that includes the schools' property tax hike) you won't be able to say a thing.

Best option is to comment now, and say it loud. Tonight's Board of Trustees meeting will take place at 8 p.m. in Rutherford Hall at Village Hall.

At present, the Village anticipates a 5.9-percent increase to taxes imposed for local services, a large portion of which is due to an increased, one-time contribution to employees' pension plans and also the wave of new reassessments that have brought down the value of property and hence, the amount collected in taxes. The Board of Education is still deliberating on the tax increase, and it has wavered between near the high 2-percent range.

But if the last hearing's turnout on April 13 is any indication, there isn't much interest, or maybe residents don't mind paying a lot for what they value most. 

At April 13th's meeting, only the president of the public library's board, Joyce Hirsch, along with Jane Veron, Presidnet of the Scarsdale League of Women Voters and Bob Harrison of the Scarsdale Citizen's Tax Alert came out.

Tonight's agenda promises more discussion and public comment on the proposed increases, and a presentation by Boine Johnson, former mayor and representative of the Scarsdale Forum (also called the TVCC).

Attached to this item is tonight's Board of Trustees' agenda and the proposed budget.