BLOOMFIELD, NJ — Bloomfield residents will be paying $50 more in taxes on the average assessed home, according to Township Administrator Matthew Watkins. Watkins spoke during a 2018 budget preview at the township conference meeting Monday evening. The total budget is $95 million. The average assessed home in Bloomfield is $270,600.
Watkins acknowledged that it was a difficult budget. He called it fiscally tight. It is $2.6 million under the tax levy cap and $3.3 million under the appropriations cap.
He emphasised that property values drive everything and in 2017, the good news was that value was up slightly. Revenue for the township has remained stable. Overall, the budget increase was .21 percent.
“Basically, we’re flat,” Watkins said.
The biggest cost to the township will be debt service, but the financial rating for Bloomfield has improved.
“In NJ, everyone’s rating is dropping,” he said. “Bloomfield’s has improved.That’s real money. We’re saving $500,000 in debt. That’s incredible.”
Watkins said rating companies like what the see in Bloomfield: the redevelopment projects, the parking utility and the budget surplus.
“All these factors are critical,” he said.
The township had $11 million in surplus. It will use $6.1 million for the 2018 budget.
Watkins cited the $26 million in new and renovation construction. Houses on the market are selling within 15 to 30 days.
“That’s wonderful,” he said.
Consolidation of police, fire and emergency management was also lauded for an improved Bloomfield. Watkins said the crime rate decreased 33 percent over the last three years. Putting a human face on the drop in crime, Watkins said the decrease means that 400 fewer families are being affected by crime.
He pointed to the Fire Department being rated highly and the Department of Health being nationally accredited and a shared service to eight other communities. Library and Department of Recreation programs were expanding, too.
The surface of Bloomfield roadways have been improving, Watkins said. In 2017, $5.5 million was spent on paving. This year, another million would be spent.
There was even talk of snow. Watkins said the winter produced 12 snow events with a total of 45 inches. A state-sanctioned snow trust help with this, he said.
Water improvements cost $6.3 million the last three years, but Watkins said the big item was a parcel of land the township acquired. It is located near the Clifton border and a water supply from north Jersey. On the property, the township plans to install mechanisms to provide Bloomfield with a second water source. This will take at least two years, Watkins said. New water meters will be installed for every water customer, too.
“This will take 18 months,” he said. “Some people don’t even know where their meters are. Some are behind walls or buried in pits.”
There will also be new parking meters in the downtown area. They will be installed on a pilot program basis. Two vendors are being considered and drivers will pay at a kiosk. License plates will be photographed. It is estimated the new system will increase parking revenue by one-third.
The first reading of the budget is scheduled for April 23.
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