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The Rochester city council is discussing a proposed budget for next year that, if approved, would lead to the largest year-to-year property tax hike in a decade — bumping the tax levy by 10.35 percent. 

By comparison, both Minneapolis and St. Paul are considering hikes around 8 percent for next year, which is more in line with national trends. 

Rochester’s city administrator Alison Zelms said initially the city was on track for an 8 percent increase but developments along the way changed the calculation.

“We settled some contracts in the meantime before this projection came out and we were very far behind on our police wages, and we also had a market adjustment in our firefighter wages.” 

She added that the boost in police pay is meant to bring wages closer to the median. 

The city council additionally wants to allocate money to “upgrade a 65-year-old pool.”

In total, this budget lays out an increase of city spending by $120 million next year, 21 percent higher than this year’s budget. 

In terms of who would actually absorb the hike in property taxes, Zelms said it will be dependent on assessed property values, which will determine “whether or not commercial, or apartment, or residential increases more than the other.”

The city council will meet next on Sept. 9 to continue discussion of the levy and budget. 

For more on Rochester’s proposed budget from city administrator Alison Zelms, click the play button on the player above.

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The Rochester city council is discussing a proposed budget for next year that, if approved, would lead to the largest year-to-year property tax hike in a decade — bumping the tax levy by 10.35 percent. Rochester’s city administrator Alison Zelms said initially the city was on track for an 8 percent increase, which would be closer to national trends, but developments along the way changed the calculation.

Rochester considers hiking property taxes by 10 percent next year

The Plummer Building, downtown Rochester, Minn.

Rochester considers hiking property taxes by 10 percent next year

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