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Chelsea City Hall
Chelsea City Hall
The proposed one-cent sales tax increase that was introduced at the July 2 Chelsea City Council meeting has become a hot topic of discussion within the city. Residents will have a chance for their voices to be heard, for or against this proposal, at the upcoming city council meeting on July 16, at 6 p.m. at City Hall.
With all the response Mayor Tony Picklesimer has received so far, he said most of it has been positive.
“Part of the dissension is because of misinformation,” Picklesimer said. “Many people didn’t know what ancillary means. These are types of projects that the Board of Education can’t or won’t fund, that we as a city with the resources available could fund. That’s kind of things we want to do with this money.”
The proposed increase would move Chelsea businesses’ sales tax from 9% to 10% and bring in $125,000 per month, or $1.5 million per year.
“This proposed tax increase only affects people if they shop in the city limits,” Picklesimer said. “There will be a resolution with this one-cent tax to be set aside and 100% earmarked for education purposes only. It will not be able to be diverted to other projects and go into a separate school account only to be used on school projects and approved by the city council.”
Mayor Picklesimer said the quality of academics of Chelsea schools is not in question, but he wants to do more for the five schools beyond what the BOE can provide.
“Their money goes to teachers, classrooms, brick and mortar,” he said. “Education as a whole entire experience, as a whole, is so much more than that. One project that was brought to our attention is that teachers are having to buy their school supplies and pay for copies.”
“We have 297 classrooms in our five schools, and we want to give $500 to every teacher at the start of school year to buy supplies. That’s $150,000. The money has to come from somewhere,” he said.
There are numerous other projects on the agenda that the money from the proposed tax would pay for, including repairs to the middle school running track. The visitor restroom at the high school football stadium has been out of order for years and needs an $8,000 pump. The home restroom is a portable one from Shelby County.
The city council has already funded several projects for the schools. Last school year, they paid for the construction to add a south car drop off line at Chelsea Middle School to alleviate the traffic from only one lane. The cost for the project was $150,000.
The council gives $25,000 to each of the five schools each year for a total of $125,000. The concession stand that burned at the middle school only had $200,000 of insurance on it and the council was asked to pay for the rest. The council also funded 75% of the new restroom project at the middle school and are paying 25% of the construction of the multi-purpose building being built behind Chelsea High School, which will be an indoor practice facility and weight room. The cost of the project is $500,000, and the city is paying $125,000 of that.
As an example of how this increase can help our schools, Picklesimer pointed to Helena, which passed a one-cent sales tax in April 2011 in anticipation of a new high school being built in 2014.
“As a city, they were ready when the county appropriated funds for a new high school,” Picklesimer said. “The Board of Education didn’t have money for some of the things they wanted in the construction budget, but because they had previously passed the sales tax, they were ready to step in when the opportunity presented itself. There will be a new Chelsea High School sometime in the future and we want to be ready when the opportunity presents itself.”
If the city council does vote to pass the sales tax increase, it wouldn’t apply to prescription drugs, medical supplies and devices covered by insurance or diabetic supplies. Picklesimer said the difference for Chelsea shoppers’ wallets will be small.
“On a $20 bill at restaurant, the tax that would’ve been $1.80 will now be $2.00, it’s 20 cents,” Picklesimer said. “If you spend $200 at Publix, instead of $18 tax, it will be $20.”
Picklesimer said while he is not pro-taxes, he was for the gas tax because there hadn’t been an increase since 1992 and there are roads and bridges that need repair. This proposed one-cent tax is also something he thinks it is time for.
“It’s important to me for people to see we how we are managing our money,” he said. “We passed a one-cent sales tax in 2008 for capital improvement and with that, we were able to do a bond [to] build the Community Center. $64,000 every month is put into our capital fund. We save that money. Last year we passed a $12.8 million capital budget, only borrowing $9.9 million to do that. How? We invest and manage the money already allocated and spend it wisely over time,” he said.
In comparison to nearby cities, Pelham has $50 million in debt, Alabaster has $60 million in debt and Hoover has $150 million in debt. Meanwhile, Chelsea’s debt is $19 million.
At Tuesday’s public hearing, anyone who wants to speak will have an allotted amount of time. The mayor will also ask for a show of hands from the audience who is for or against the increase for those who do not want to address the council. It will take place during the 6 p.m. city council meeting at City Hall.
