BRADLEY BEACH — The Bradley Beach Council introduced the municipal 2023 budget on Wednesday, May 10, after failing to do so at its previous meeting on April 26.
Total appropriations for the town are $11,029,097 — up $127,200 from 2022.
The annual tax rate would be decreasing by four cents on the dollar under this introduced budget.
Based on the borough average assessed property value of $972,355, the annual municipal tax bill is estimated to increase by 5.3 percent in the 2023 fiscal year, to approximately $3,525. The total increase including non-municipal levies [library, school and county] would be 4.4 percent. However, depending on the actual value of one’s home, this number can vary.
Although the tax rate is lowered slightly, the average value of Bradley Beach’s 1,934 appraised homes has gone up, which signals the net increase of 5.3 percent. This is because homes in the borough have gained value year-over-year; the 2023 average value of $972,355 is an increase of $160,755 from 2022.
Although homeowners in the borough will now be paying 36 cents for every $100 of assessed value — 4 cents less than in 2022 — the homes themselves are worth more, leading to that overall 5.3 percent increase.
According to Mayor Larry Fox, the annual municipal tax bill increase will be roughly $255, while the total average increase, including municipal, library, school and county levies, is roughly $419. This total estimate is a 4.4 percent increase, smaller than the municipal tax increase.
“The question we asked was ‘How can we provide appropriate services while minimizing cost to the extent possible?’” Mayor Fox said. “Budgeting is a tough process at a municipal level.”
The introduced budget is available for public review at bradleybeachnj.gov/budgets-and-audits, under the “Municipal Budgets” tab.
PROCLAMATION HONORING JOHN ZECH
The council announced a proclamation honoring John Zech, a 45-year veteran of the Bradley Beach Fire Department.
“[O]n behalf of the Governing Body, employees, and residents of the Borough of Bradley Beach,” said the proclamation, “we wish to express sincere thanks to John Zech for his dedicated and faithful service to the Bradley Beach Fire Department and the Bradley Beach First Aid Squad and highly commend him for the manner in which he has carried out his volunteer duties.”
For more on this story, read the next edition of The Coast Star—on newsstands Thursday or online in our e-Edition.
Check out our other Bradley Beach stories, updated daily. And remember to pick up a copy of The Coast Star—on newsstands Thursday or online in our e-Edition.
Subscribe today! If you're not already an annual subscriber to The Coast Star, get your subscription today! For just $38 per year, you will receive local mail delivery weekly, with pages and pages of local news and online access to our e-edition on Starnewsgroup.com.
