Clyde Hill News: $4.7 BILLION real estate assessment sets Clyde Hill record; what residents should expect from new property tax levy
Also: update on Administration/Police issues; Public Disclosure Commission dismisses complaint
Real estate in Clyde Hill has been assessed at almost $4.7 billion according to the Administration’s property tax memo to the Council and public (link). This is an increase of ~35% over last year’s valuation of real estate property in Clyde hill, and the highest recorded total assessed value for the city.
On Tuesday, the City will hold a public hearing before the Council considers the 2023 budget, including a property tax levy increase (link). What this means for residents, below, after the disclaimer.
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Disclaimer: while I am a councilmember on the Clyde Hill City Council, I write this newsletter in my capacity as an individual resident. Any opinions expressed are my own and not necessarily the position of the City. The information and references here are from public sources. I welcome email responses — and if the topic is about City business I will respond from my City email account.
Property Tax Levy Update
The very short version of the increased property tax that the city council will consider on Tuesday is that property taxes residents pay to the City of Clyde Hill will go up a total of $24,075 across the ~1,100 homes in the City:
Back in August, this newsletter did a deep dive on property taxes and the city budget (link). Only about 5% of what residents pay in real estate taxes to King County goes to Clyde Hill. Using last year’s numbers, for example:
“a property in Clyde Hill with an assessed value of $1,000,000 will pay a total of $7,728.71 to King County in property taxes. Of that total, $371.35, or about 5%, will go to the City of Clyde Hill.”
Budget (Deficit) Update
The Administration’s proposed 2023 budget spends $490,000 more than it takes in in revenue:
Clyde Hill balances its budget by spending reserves (that’s where the “Operating Transfers” above come from) to cover the gap between revenues and expenditures; those reserves reflect one-time exceptional revenue from Bellevue School District construction in Clyde Hill. (More details in this newsletter (link); Clyde Hill has other recent one-time exceptional revenue in the form of “American Rescue Plan Act” (ARPA) funds.)
As reported earlier (link), while running a deficit is not sustainable, it is what Clyde Hill has done for several years:
The City’s General Fund finished fiscal year 2020 with a deficit of $100,561.
The City’s General Fund finished fiscal year 2021 with a deficit of $50,565.
The City’s General Fund is expected to finish fiscal year 2022 with a deficit of $271,096 (as of 8/31/2022).
Councilmembers Friedman and Jones worked to put a “plan for a plan” in place for a sustainable budget; the Administration has tentatively scheduled a meeting for early 2023 to begin working through that plan.
Administration / Police Update
The Mayor met with police officers earlier this week for several hours, kicking off the Administration’s response to October’s unanimous Council resolution asking her and the City Administrator to report to the public on their plan and next steps to address the ongoing “serious problem” between them and Clyde Hill’s police officers.
A report out from this meeting is not part of next week’s meeting agenda at this time.
Last week’s newsletter included a detailed recap (link) of the ongoing trust problems between Administration leadership (Mayor, City Administrator) and police officers. Examples of issues include
an exit interview with a departing Clyde Hill police officer that indicated “a clear lack of trust in the administration,” and
a letter from the union representing Clyde Hill police officers expressing concerns about the Administration misrepresenting facts and allegations of mishandling City documents and dereliction of duty on the part of the Mayor and City Administrator.
At this time, I’m reporting only that the meeting happened but not anything that was said in order to give the Mayor a chance to provide her public update first.
Public Disclosure Commission Update
Washington State’s Public Disclosure Commission (PDC) recently closed an investigation into the financial disclosure provided by Clyde Hill Councilmember Dean Hachamovitch (me) (link).
The “PDC finds that no further action is warranted and has dismissed this matter” after issuing a warning. The warning reflected that I forgot to disclose college savings plans (529s) I set up for my nephew and niece, as well as an unused LLC.
The PDC “enforces the state’s disclosure and campaign finances laws, and provides public access to information about lobbying activities, the financial affairs of elected and appointed public officials, and campaign contributions and expenditures” (link).
The investigation was in response to a complaint initiated by my neighbor, Spencer Nurse. A lawyer, speaking on background, offered that almost all PDC complaints are politically or personally motivated based on technicalities; a small number are serious and are what the PDC was intended for.
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Dean Hachamovitch