If the City of Vero Beach increased total property tax receipts from $4 million to $5 million, the additional $1 million in revenue would enable the city to avoid additional layoffs and further cuts in services.
How much would the tax increase cost members of the City Council? In order to help keep neighborhoods protected, fountains flowing, public pools open, parks mowed and public beaches guarded, Mayor Craig Fletcher would pay $21.35 a year in additional city taxes Though Fletcher bought his McAnsh Park home in 1992 for $105,000, its current taxable value is just $87,990.
Because the city’s portion is just 12 percent of the typical tax bill, a 25 percent increase in the city’s millage rate would result in an overall increase of approximately five percent. So, how much would an increase from 2 mills to 2.5 mills cost City Council members?
Tracy Carroll:
Current Vero Beach property tax – $2,223.72 per year
25 percent increase- $555.93
Craig Fletcher:
Current Vero Beach property tax – $85.34 per year
25 percent increase – $21.25
Jay Kramer:
Current Vero Beach property tax – $817.88 per year
25 percent increase – $204.47
Pilar Turner:
Current Vero Beach property tax – $1,355.50
25 percent increase – $388.87
Richard Winger:
Current Vero Beach property tax – $1,862.17
25 percent increase – $465.54
Indian River Guardian 
This is absolutely incredible! This is all the proof that anyone with common sense needs to realize that property taxes could and should be raised if the COVB is going to meet all the municipal needs.
Actually, anyone with common sense would see that annexing the south beach would do the same thing and lower taxes. They have all benefits of the city without paying a dime. And still,they want to have all the input.
There needs to be some delineation of what the “alleged” benefits are for the South Beach residents that are not being paid by the exorbitant fees assessed in being customers of COVB utilities.
The biggest benefit, in my opinion, is the use of our “brand”. In South Florida, if you live south of “Boca” you live in Deerfield beach. You lose the “Boca” brand. People from West Palm Beach don’t claim to live in “Palm Beach”. The address on your mail, the perception people have,
all add value. Realtors refer to you as “Vero Beach”. What is the aversion to annexation? Mark has made it clear that your overall
property tax bill would not rise much. It makes perfect sense. We share all utilities now, and your Police protection increases dramatically . The added taxes would allow our Parks, Beaches, boat ramps, etc., which you use now, to reach an even greater level of maintenance. And then we can really be neighbors.
Annexation needs to be contiguous, in other words all city properties need to be touching each other to be annexed. I think there are too many parcels of land between Vero Beach and South Beach which would mean that you would have to have all of the people who live on the in-between properties be annexed before South Beach could be considered.
Also, annexation is a two way street and a 100 percent two way street, i might add. If South Beach wants to be annexed they need 100% of South Beach to agree and then Vero would be in a position to annex them. A very hard process indeed to get everyone on the same page for annexation.
Since annexation is nearly impossible in this instance, I think the City of Vero Beach should try very hard to open up a friendly dialog with the residents of South Beach. Just saying
As it stands right now, the main spokespersons who espouse Vero Beach as the ogre are the team of Feherty, Heran, and Solari. Vero Beach needs an advocate..
This is unbelievable, the 2 unincorporated predominantly democratic black communities are paying thru the roof and no tax dollars have not filter across the track nor wabasso. HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE when black peopls are paying 1555, 00 for dilapidated homes and businesses are paying unGodly amounts yearly. We pay the highest taxes and don’t evsn see the sweat off the Tax. Dollars. SOMETHING is seriously WRONG here in irc. How is it that ths blacks are paying the highest taxes and our communities are the poorest. We have invented a new meaning for Poverty because 3rd world countrys standards are higher.
We pay the highest Taxes and schedule to pay higher taxes very soon . How can irc continue to sleep comfortably at night knowing that a travesty is going on? Gifford/Wabasso are extremely poor and blighted. The rate of unemployment is extremely high, extremely high drop out rate, extremely high dilapidated Homes which now leads to high depression, high substance Abuse, extremely high Desperation =high Crimes… This is where our communities are at because we paid high taxes and received not the sweat off the Taxes. When the Grants monies come in that’s written using our communities stats we see O Zero dollars of that monies. IS THIS RIGHT? HOW LONG MUST THE BLACK PEOPLE SUFFER WHEN THEY PAY THE HIGHEST TAXES?
Anthony seems to feel that the use of “brand” has some tangible monetary benefit for the South Beach community and it does not.
Annexation would only make sense if there were some substantial benefit to each and every South Beach citizen and there is not.
It is highly questionable that given the median age of the population in South Beach that there is indeed any substantial use of parks, beaches, boat ramps, etc. South Beach itself has its own parks and a significant portion of boat owners have no need of boat ramps because they have dockage in their own community. Additionally, a significant portion of the residents of South Beach are here only part-time.
If there are to be any added taxes, they should be paid by COVB homeowners who have had their rates subsidized for decades because of the high fees charged to the South Beach community for electrical service.
Most of the South Beach community would have been more than satisified with a partial sale of the electrical service which received very little consideration from the COVB “leaders.” Since the sale does not seem to be inevitable, perhaps it is now time to begin assessing the feasibility of a partial sale.
Gifford/Wabasso are paying some heavy duty Taxes and we have nothing to show for it. No Revitization, No improvements, No Maintance to fortify our communities. We are now ask to be higher taxes. What are we buying? Who benefit when we pay those inflated tax bills? Is this Constitutionally Right? The poorest paying the highest! How long must this go on? Who’s accountable for this? Did irc purposely allow over taxing the poor, so that the Elective Official go free? Whats going on here? Our people are suffering and living in Squalor? Why is that???? This is probably a human violation as well as a Civil Violation. THIS IS WRONG ON SO MANY LEVELS!!!!!!
Gifford/Wabasso are within the Boarders of the 6th wealthiest county in Fl. The 2 predominantly democratic communities pays the highest TAxes and looked less than a 3rd world country. How is that possible when Grant monies come into irc base on the stats of those communties? Where are the dollars set aside for Iimprovements, fortification and revitilazation? Who do we call or visited about this? There is something seriously WRONG in I R C? I think that Ray Charles and Stevie Wonder can see thru this?
Wanda F. Scott has the answer imbedded in her own comment. If Gifford/Wabbasso is ever to achieve equity, then they need to vote for someone in their own community to have a seat at the table.
If your needs are not being met, use the power of the vote to remove those “leaders” who are neglecting the citizens.
Bob Solari is the elected official who is charged with being the advocate for South Beach. Additionally, the volunteer advocates are the South Beach Property Owners Assn. and Steve Faherty.
Pat, Brand has a huge monetary effect, Are you kidding me? In this community, how can you argue that? Anyway, for the small amount of added property tax, AS I HAVE SAID, the improvement in police protection alone would be worth it. And that would be a benefit to each and every south beach citizen. As for the electric rates, remember, we too, were paying the high rates this whole time. Without charging you extra, how would we have paid 2 million dollars to fight your fight. Also, remember that the county is adding a substantial upcharge to your electric bill.
A partial sale has always made sense. Look into it, have Mr. Solari get involved and make it happen. Better yet, do your deal with Ft. Pierce and hook right up. Maybe get water and sewer from them, too.
Remember, without the City of Vero Beach to Provide all your services, the south beach would still be Marsh. That’s gratitude!!!
BEA, THERE IS NO “SOUTH BEACH”. Everything south of Vero on the island could annex. In two minutes, you have rendered the idea “nearly impossible”. There is no downside for South Beach Property Owners.
It may not be in line with every ones future plans, however, and there lies the resistance. I would think the enormous improvement in police protection without starting your own town to do it makes it an easy decision. They immediately save the county surcharge on their electric bill, which almost would pay the tax increase. (I don’t know that, but if Charlie Wilson can fib, so can I).
The “small amount of property tax” should be paid by the homeowners of the City of Vero Beach who have low property rates only because of the subsidies from the non-city residents who have paid for utilities.
Brand may be a nice concept but it does not pay the grocery bill. If brand had a monetary effect, then my bank account would not suffer each month when the electric bill arrives.
Its too late for a partial sale. The COVB lack of leadership has made it impossible. A partial sale would have been just basic common sense.
The gratitude for the South Beach community not being marsh land goes to the forward thinking developers and not to anyone in the City of Vero Beach.
Gratitude is what the residents of the COVB should be giving to the South Beach residents for having kept their property tax bills arifically low.
There is very low probability that there are sufficient votes to authorize an annexation of South Beach.
There is a considerable downside to the South Beach Property Owners because (1) they would have to deal with the dysfunctional COVB “leaders” and (2) there is no reason to incur yet another tax.
The police protection in the South Beach area is more than adequate despite the false propaganda generated by the zip code weekly newspaper.
Bottom line: There is ZERO advantage in South Beach annexation to the indiividual owners of propery in the South Beach area.
Pat, the south beach customers represent just 13 percent Vero Electric’s customers outside the city limits, yet they register 110 percent of the complaints.
I am one of those who have registered complaints because I have often lost electricity for hours at a time; This has resulted in my throwing food away because I did not want to take the health risk of eating food that had thawed because the power was out. Obviously, my situation is not unique.
There is a reason that the momentum to get rid of Vero Beach utilities was initiated in the South Beach area.
Unique, indeed. FPL, you know, stands for Frequent Power Loss, so good luck with that.
Interesting to hear you say that the push to sell was initiated in the south beach. Why do you think you should not pay the freight on getting it done.
Pat, remember also that the 13 percent of customers in the south beach are the reason for the substation issue that will be another
stumbling block. And, you want county water even though there is no
water line serving you and the city is charging you the same price. Is
there something more going on here? Are there some ulterior motives for all this dissention from the south beach? Why all the animosity?