Raising The Stakes: What Smithtown Residents Can Expect From 2007

Suffolk County has always been a close cousin to Nassau, with more open space, generally bigger homes, mere serene neighborhoods, and lower taxes. But, that may soon change, at least for the residents of Smithtown.

According to official the tax hike slated for Smithtown starting in 2007 is all part of a tentative budget (for the upcoming year) based on hikes in health benefits and fuel costs and less revenue from mortgage tax receipts.

The hike will, according to officials, result in an increase of about $135 for the typical and standard homeowner whose property is assessed at $6,000. But they note that taxes will be a bit less for those residing in the villages of Head of the Harbor, Nissequogue, and Village of the Branch because they foot the bill for their roadwork and lighting costs. And, they add that Smithtown’s budget does not account for such services as fire and ambulance departments.

The new $46 million general fund budget is still not final and a hearing will be help on October 26th at 8 p.m. at the Senior Citizen Center on Main Street.

Authorities suggest that the hike is essential since there is an expected increase in fuel and electricity costs will rise by about 22 percent in the upcoming year.

Officials add that that some of the cost was reflected in increase in garbage collection, but it was not nearly as much as it would have been if the town had maintained the traditional diesel-powered trucks. Instead, it recently signed a seven-year contract with garbage collectors to use only natural-gas vehicles/trucks and locked in a set price on natural gas through 2012.

They further interject that recent deal will help not only displace more than 2.5 million gallons of foreign oil, but also protect against the costs of and unstable oil market, as well as emitting less pollutants into the air (and all at a fixed rate)

And, in other local, community news, state officials recently announced that they secured $1 million in state monies to allocate toward sidewalk repairs and road paving in the town. Local officials are also petitioning for additional funds to allocate to capital improvements such as sidewalk repairs.