Oakland may raise property taxes

The town of Oakland traditionally has either lowered its millage rate or kept it the same for the last decade and tentatively was expecting to maintain last year’s rate of 6.3 for another fiscal year. But after Orange County Fire Rescue announced it was increasing the millage to its Municipal Service Taxing Unit rate by .6, the town likely will have to pass along that increase to its residents.

The town currently contracts with OCFR to provide fire rescue and prevention services to town residents through an interlocal agreement between the town and Orange County. The cost of these services in the interlocal is determined by applying the millage levied in the MSTU to the ad valorem assessment, Town Manager Andy Stewart wrote in a memo to the commission, which was included in the packet for the July 23 Town Commission meeting.

“The budgeted cost to provide these services in the current fiscal year was $1,543,584, while the proposed new cost in accordance with the interlocal agreement would be $2,065,081 for (Fiscal Year 2024-25),” Stewart wrote. “This represents a total dollar increase of $521,497.”

OCFR also services the town of Eatonville and the cities of Edgewood and Belle Isle.

In past years, the cost of the interlocal agreement has steadily risen. In Fiscal Year 2021, the amount Oakland paid OCFR was $760,958, followed by $901,461 in FY 2021-22, $1,286,320 in FY 2022-23 and $1,486,029 in FY 2023-24.

The commission was notified of the increase by Orange County July 12, after it had approved June 25 a proposed budget of $9,149,168 with no increase to the town’s millage rate of 6.3.

“I don’t think this is the correct thing for them to do at this time,” Mayor Shane Taylor said. “I’ve already reached out and expressed our displeasure. … It would have been nice to maybe negotiate. … (They) maybe could have done an incremental increase over time that the town could have absorbed.”

Residents attending the meeting made suggestions, such as cutting services in the town or starting its own volunteer fire service.

“We are living within our means, and anything we cut would be detrimental to the residents,” Stewart said.

Donna Reed, an Oakland resident who spent 31 years with the fire department, said a volunteer department would not work because it would cost more than the $2 million the town spends for the county’s services.

Taylor said he has had several conversations with Orange County.

“The conversation was … it was basically to keep up with the services they provide,” he said. “They do provide great services. … It’s not a service you really want to do without in this town. If there’s an emergency, you want someone who can come and take care of you.”

The town still is in discussions with the county.

Commissioners voted in favor of the increased tentative millage rate of 6.9, contingent upon the actions of the Orange County Board of County Commissioners at its Sept. 19 meeting. If the county’s millage rate for fire and EMS services decreases, so, too, will Oakland’s.

IN OTHER BUSINESS

• Eryn Russell of the Florida League of Cities presented the Environmental Stewardship Award to the Oakland Town Commission for its efforts to promote environmental sustainability, improve and protect environmental conditions, and provide environmental education and outreach programs. Russell said this was the most competitive year yet for the award.

“We couldn’t do it without the town support and the support of all our volunteers,” said Jennifer Hunt, director of the Oakland Nature Preserve.

• Police Chief Darron Esan presented commendation awards to multiple officers. Officer Andrew Ricks was honored for his role in locating an elderly man with diminished mental acuity; and Michael Almodovar, Anthony Edwards and Colten Horne were recognized for their role in handling an IT issue that affected records storage and filing police reports.

• The commission approved the consent agenda, which included several items. One is a grant agreement that provides $2 million in funding from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection for the Oakland Alternative Water Project. This will allow the town to provide a lower-quality water source to meet irrigation demands instead of relying on high-quality drinking water. Also approved was a new memorandum of understanding between the Oakland Police Department and the Orange County Sheriff’s Office that identifies legal requirements for obtaining mutual aid within Orange County’s jurisdiction.

• Commissioners discussed a revision of the tree section of the town’s Land Development Code to comply with Florida Statute and add the penalty section back in that was removed when the code was revised in 2020. Once the town attorney approves the revisions, an ordinance will be brought before the elected officials.

“We want to have a larger penalty if someone removes a tree,” Assistant Town Manager Elise Hui said. “We want to avoid some of these issues that we’ve come across.”

• Elected officials approved a building and safety fee study in the amount of $35,700. Municipalities are required to establish fees to cover the costs of building departments but are not allowed to generate revenue, develop reserves or provide financial support to other municipality positions not directly tied to building activities. In Nov. 2022, previous management realized the town had developed a surplus of revenue in the building department because of established permit fees. The fee study will allow the town to adopt a more sustainable free schedule and balance the building budget.

• Town Manager Andy Stewart announced a dirt road survey is available on the town’s water bills and at Town Hall until mid-August and was to be added to the town’s website. This will help the commission when preparing future budgets and give commissioners a good idea of what residents want.