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The BOE SPLOST tax of about $20 million per
year must fund renovations of existing facilities, relief of current school
congestion, and also school expansion for new students.
Some developers have contributed about $500
per house.
Conclusion: SPLOST taxpayers (primarily
Cherokee County residents) and developers do not contribute enough tax
to fund new growth as it comes.
The residential tax digest for 2001 is $2,338,027,847,
which is 50.95% of the total tax digest of $4,588,094,545, countywide.
The commercial tax digest for 2001 is $611,778,180,
and the industrial tax digest is $159,505,652, countywide, which together
account for 17.2% of the tax digest.
Agricultural, Conservation, Timber, Utilities,
Mobile Homes, and Motor Vehicles contribute the balance of the tax digest.
Conclusion: Since non-residential
development does not increase school expenses, but does contribute to
school revenues, these types of development are to be encouraged.
Commercial (retail) development is driven
by the demands of the residential consumers of a community. Commercial
supply usually paces demand, but empty storefronts along Highway 92 and
in Riverstone suggest that supply is close to exceeding demand. Industrial
development responds to existing infrastructure and availability of a
labor pool. Cherokee County has one of the lowest unemployment rates in
the region. Most new residents have employment outside the county, so
the small labor pool is perpetuated. The County Commission has funded
bonds for land for a large technology park in Canton. Property tax revenue
from this park will more than pay the cost of county services, and the
school tax will help offset the tax shortfall of residential development.
To the extent that commercial and industrial growth encourages residential
growth, however, the positive fiscal impact of even these types of development
is diminished.
Development costs taxpayers long after the
developers have finished building. What development do we want to pay
for? Is our quality of life dependent on a high percentage of non-residential
development? Or is it more related to the agriculturally developed or
undeveloped land and greenspace, which require little in the way of any
services? Watch for December's announcement!
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In early December,
Cherokee County will host a public announcement by the University of Georgia
and the American Farmland Trust on the cost of development. Preliminary
results show that residential development costs much more in operating
services provided than it garners in all forms of revenue. Commercially
and industrially developed land and agriculturally and undeveloped land
pay into the general fund far more than the cost of the services they
require. Stay tuned for the details!
To whet your appetite, here are some statistics
for your consideration:
The 2001 Cherokee County operating budget,
including the fire district, is $49,348,574.
Property taxes were projected to be $25,687,942,
or 52.05% of the total budget.
Conclusion: Property taxes do not
pay for all services required by development.
The Cherokee County Board of Education operating
budget for 2001 - 2002 is funded in part by $70,651,296 of local school
taxes.
The official Cherokee County school enrollment
on September 1, 2001 was 27,242 students.
Each student must contribute $2,593.47 in
school taxes, which is the amount paid on a $326,000 property with no
exemptions.
Conclusion: High-end residential properties
and/or properties that are not residentially developed are "covering"
the tax shortfall for many students.
The projected cost to provide land and buildings
for a new elementary, middle, and high school for a total of 3,950 students
is $42,000,000 (an average cost of $10,633 per student or $7,250 per average
residence). This cost does not include the cost of operating the schools,
of course. Cherokee County school enrollment is
expected to increase by about 4,500 students per year translating to expansion
costs of $48 million annually.
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