Elburn officials estimate 2023 property taxes to decrease

Property taxes that residents pay to the village of Elburn for municipal services will be down slightly for 2023, according to officials.

Elburn Finance Director Doug Elder said at the Dec. 4 Village Board meeting that this is due in part to the recent 13% growth in the village’s equalized assessed value, which means the tax amount will be spread out among an increased number of households.

For the owner of a $250,000 home, this will mean an estimated $334 for 2023 payable in 2024, compared with $349 for 2022 paid in 2023.

Building Commissioner Tom Brennan said there have been building permits for 95 new homes issued this year and six additional homes with permits pending. Village President Jeff Walter said they expect to break 100 before the end of the year.

The taxes that residents pay to the village are for items such as salaries and benefits for village employees, police protection, street and sidewalk maintenance, snow plowing and administration.

Property taxes make up 26% of the village’s revenue. Sales tax makes up 37%. Permits, fines and fees make up 11% of the village’s revenue.

Residents who live in special service areas such as Blackberry Creek and Elburn Station subdivisions will pay an additional tax amount for specific services the village provides to those residents. Elder said although there is some variation in the services provided to each SSA, the primary use of tax money across all SSAs is for controlling stormwater.

For the owner of a $250,000 home in the Blackberry Creek subdivision, the estimated SSA tax amount for 2023 will stay the same as it was in 2022 – $116.

Taxes paid to the village for its services are a minor portion of a homeowner’s property taxes. For the same Blackberry Creek resident, the base amount of taxes paid to the village is about 5% of the total taxes they pay and the SSA amount is about 2% of the amount compared wtih 4% for the library, 8% for fire protection and 69% for school taxes.

Progress for stoplight at Anderson Road and Route 38

Progress is taking place toward the installation of a stoplight at the intersection of Anderson Road and Route 38. The Village Board on Dec. 4 approved a professional services agreement with Engineering Enterprises, Inc. to complete the Phase I engineering for improvements to the intersection.

The village has been working to make the project happen since 2015, when the need for traffic installation was identified. In 2018, the Illinois Department of Transportation determined the intersection met the requirements that would warrant a traffic signal. All that was needed was money to pay for it. The location was added to IDOT’s list of warranted traffic signal intersections, awaiting the “appropriate funding.”

Elburn applied for and was approved for governmental funds, including money from the Surface Transportation Program and an Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity grant that former state Rep. Keith Wheeler was instrumental in moving forward.

The cost for Phase 1, which is preparatory engineering work for the project and includes identifying the environmental impacts, is not to exceed $274,428.

Total cost for the project is estimated to be $3,450,000.

The timeframe for its completion has been identified as five years.

Although there is an amount ($1.05 million) for which sources still need to be identified, Walter said, “it’s coming along.”

While Walter would like the stoplight installed sooner rather than later because of the number of crashes that have taken place there, he’s happy they’re on the right path.

“Just getting on IDOT’s (five-year plan) schedule is a major step forward,” he said.