Belleville City Council considers more taxes to balance new budget

Interim city manager Steve Jones gave a brief report on the city’s preliminary budget at the June 1 regular meeting of the Belleville City Council.
He said the financial consultant was working on final details and the final copy of the budget will be ready for the June 15 public hearing.
Jones said there are three options for the estimated $242,000 deficit: with option two being favored which is revenue from the Savage Road property sale of $121,000 plus an increase of one more public safety mill of $121,000.
Option one was two new public safety mills. Option three is no new taxes and cuts of proposed purchases in the new budget.
In other business at the June 1regular meeting, the council:
• Heard a presentation by Beck Barber of Verkada on security cameras for city hall. Verkada is the manufacturer and Barber is based in Phoenix. Sehi in Jackson would install and maintain the cameras. It would be about a $15,000 total cost for the five-year option;
• Approved the annual city-wide yard sales for Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 12 and 13. Residents will not have to pay for permits to hold sales those days;
• Approved the 2026 Tax Rate Request of 8.4396 operating mills to be levied on July 1 and 11.25 mills for police and fire protection on Dec. 1;
• Heard a presentation on the Civic Duty Education Day set for 1 to 3 p.m. on Saturday, June 6, at Fourth Street Place with the Belleville Downtown Development Authority, SOOAR, and Survivors Speak as cooperating sponsors. Free food and entertainment. The council set June 6 as Civic Duty Education Day in the city of Belleville;
• Approved purchase of police gym equipment with a five-year warranty, which will be used by all city employees. Total cost is $9,790. City councilman Randy Priest showed interest in using it, as well, and was told he was welcome;
• Delayed action until the next meeting on the proposed Blue Care Network new insurance options for employees. Mayor Voigt wanted the council to get a look at the charts presented as part of the budget study before action;
• Heard Jones report that the first car show of the season went off with a large crowd that afternoon and the Farmers Market has expanded and was holding its first session of the season that afternoon. He also reported the Horizon Park bids are out, but there have been slight changes and the opening of bids will be June 23 and the work will be delayed a couple of week into mid September;
• Heard Mayor Voigt say the city’s plan to upgrade the intersection at Main and Denton has the same contractor as the bridge. He said he has told them that they shouldn’t delay the opening of the bridge for the intersection work and the intersection can be done after the Fourth of July. He also said he enjoyed meeting the Belleville 3 who founded Techno Music in the early 1980s. He reported 10% of their income from the event was to go to the school district’s robotic club;
• Heard councilwoman Julie Kissel say she took part in a two-hour zoom session that day on updates on the state legislature and she passed on information to the council. She said the $350,000 still not paid on the city’s Horizon Park grant could be in jeopardy.