Unless it can find a way to fund its road program and other capital improvements, Burr Ridge will likely need to draw down on its cash reserves in future years.
Although the village’s budget for 2015-16 is balanced, as is the budget for 2016-17, future years’ budgets will likely be in the red if the village plans to continue putting money into its roads at the rate it does now.
Village Administrator Steve Stricker suggested Burr Ridge officials consider a tax referendum in 2016 to generate money for road and pathway projects. Stricker said with the bonds that brought Lake Michigan water to Burr Ridge retiring in 2016, a seamless transition could be made, with residents simply paying the increased tax for road instead of the water bonds.
“We need a separate revenue source for capital projects,” Stricker told Village Board members. “An idea is a referendum in March 2016.”
Replacing the water bonds with an increased tax levy would allow the village to continue to keep its roadways in top shape, the village administrator said.
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“I don’t think residents will realize that adjustment. Remember, we are less than 3 percent of the residents’ tax bill,” Stricker said. “I think it would be worth it to retain the condition of our roads. It would be a small price to pay.”
Stricker said residents are proud of the quality roads in the village. To keep those quality roadways, Stricker said, it will cost money.
When asked how long he expected the road bonds to be for, Stricker responded, “Forever.”
Without another funding source, if the village wants to stay with its existing road maintenance program, it will need to tap into cash reserves, Stricker said. The village has $4.6 million in cash reserves heading into the new fiscal year.
Trustee Guy Franzese noted the 2015-16 road program will tackle streets in the High Grove and Tower Drive industrial parks. While residents may not be thrilled with roads in the industrial areas being targeted instead of neighborhood streets, those businesses, Franzese pointed out, provide not just property tax, but sales tax to the village.
“Sales tax from those two areas generates 11.6 percent of all the sales tax we receive,” Franzese said.
He said maintaining all of its roadways is vital to the village’s success.
“We do have high-quality roads in the village,” Franzese said. “Take a drive into the areas around us and you can tell when you cross the border because of the quality of the roads. People have come to expect quality roads here.”
Trustee Diane Bolos said the village needs to ensure it continues to put money into pathways as well.
“I don’t want to see our Pathway Commission be defunct” because of a lack of funding, Bolos said.
The proposed village budget for 2015-16 is $18.1 million, up 4 percent from the this year. Capital projects, which includes roads, pathways and sidewalks, are expected to take $2.2 million of next year’s expenditures.
More discussion on the village’s 2015-16 budget is planned for March 23.
Kevin Beese is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
This story was updated March 16, 2015, to reflect the proposal is for an increased tax levy, and not a bond issue.