We'll know today how much the board members for Great Parks of Hamilton County want to raise property taxes.
They'll vote today on whether to put a tax hike on the November ballot and how much.
It looks almost certain that the five-member board will put some type of a levy on the ballot, with most of the board a month ago saying they favored it.
"You could even see during the COVID pandemic how much the parks were used. It is definitely a value to the community," said board member Caren Laverty at the June meeting. "It would be a benefit all around."
The additional money would pay for improvements and maintenance to the 21 county parks and conservation areas and six golf courses. Hamilton County parks have $101 million worth of projects on the drawing board for the next 10 years.
The size of the tax hike remains a question. The board in its June meeting voted to ask the auditor to certify three possible levy amounts: 1 mill, 1.18 mill and 1.25 mill. They would cost the homeowners an additional tax of $35 to $43.75 per $100,000 of home value. This would be on top of the current levy amount of $30 per $100,000.
All three are less than the 1.8 mill levy the park board attempted in 2020 that would have tacked on an additional $63 of property tax. The board rescinded the ballot measure after backlash from the public outraged that a board would seek a tax hike during the pandemic.
The meeting will take place at Winton Woods' Winton Centre in Springfield Township at 1 p.m. Follow Cincinnati.com for coverage.
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