Superior Mayor Jim Paine submitted his 2025 budget proposal to the City Council, featuring infrastructure investments and a reduced tax levy.
The main goal of Mayor Paine’s budget was to provide Superior residents with transparency about where the city’s money is going while reducing the financial burden on them. Upon the finalization of the budget and its passage by the City Council, each item in it will be accessible to the public.
Mayor Paine’s proposal on Tuesday night seeks to decrease the tax levy for the second year in a row and reduce the city’s debt for the seventh year in a row. He also promoted infrastructure projects like the solar panels at the fire department that lead to reduced utility costs and better efficiency to reduce the cost of overtime pay.
“We have invested in solar at our fire hall and we’re paying less in utilities,” said Mayor Paine. “Staff efficiencies allow us to reduce overtime and probably most importantly since we’re not taking out new debt, the debt service, the payments on that debt get smaller every single year, so as old debts fall off.”
Another noteworthy part of the proposal involved a $10 million bond that did not seem to be attached to any specific projects. According to a WDIO report, Mayor Paine explained that the bond was meant for the fire hall if grant funding from the Environmental Protection Agency or other federal funding was not received. If the funding is received, that bond could be used for another project with approval from the City Council or not used at all.
Across the bridge, the City of Duluth is seeking the same lifting of the financial burden for their residents. While Mayor Roger Reinert’s budget does include a flat levy increase, it will be paid for entirely by new economic growth so residents will not feel an increased property tax burden.
