Island Park adopts $6 million village budget

The Island Park village board adopted the 2015-16 budget at its meeting on April 16. It totals $6.7 million, an increase of $2 million over the current spending plan, and calls for a 1.6 percent increase in village taxes that Mayor Michael McGinty says will cover mandated state pension and health coverage increases for village employees.

McGinty said that the spending plan shows that the village is in good overall financial condition. It now has two fewer employees, and has cut its debt service in half. McGinty said he would be looking to increase Island Park’s bond rating.

The village purchased two new fire trucks and a new garbage truck this year. Requests for bids for the construction of a new village hall are going out this week, he said.

The village plans to raise $2 million more in revenue in the upcoming budgetary year by not only increasing taxes, but also increasing forfeited bail and fines, permits, including those for rental apartments, and beach fees. The budget projects that the village will earn over $530,000 in the upcoming year from those fines — nearly five times than this years total of $108,000.

The spending plan reflects no plans for any infrastructure improvements to the streets, storm drains, bulkheads or sewers.

McGinty said the village would “continue to reduce spending and provide the quality of services residents have come to expect and deserve, efficiently and effectively, reducing our spending every step of the way, understanding the impact of the budget on everybody’s day-to-day life.”