St. Cloud Sets 2027 Preliminary Tax Levy; Mayor Says He’ll Bring It Down

(KNSI) – The St. Cloud City Council has set a ceiling on next year’s property tax levy, and Mayor Jake Anderson says he intends to come in under it.

The council set the preliminary maximum levy Monday night. No one spoke at the public hearing before the vote. Cities have to certify a preliminary maximum by September 30th, and it can be lowered before the final vote in early December, but not raised.

The proposed 2027 General Levy Fund budget is $81.7 million. For a home worth $252,700, the city’s median, that means about $146 more a year in property taxes.

The tax rate would go up 6.44%, and that figure is really two things. The operating side accounts for 3.75%. The remaining 2.69% is the voter-approved fire referendum, which sits on the city’s debt levy and adds $2 million in debt for 2027.

Anderson was asked in an interview on KNSI Tuesday morning what happens between now and the December vote. “There was some still unknown variables that we need to figure out by the end of the year… but my goal is to continue to bring that tax levy down.”

Among those variables is the sale of the media services lot on Division Street to Gate City Bank, expected to close in September or October. There is also capital equipment the city has already put off once, and bond payments on city hall.

Anderson described getting to the number as a balancing act, and the second one he has brought to the council in as many years.

“You’re just trying to balance the cost of providing services to the public, and then how to pay for those things. It’s very somber to go through those things as you verify your financials, and again, trying to provide the services that we’re committed to providing without expanding scope of government. But yeah, it’s a challenge.”

Departments asked for roughly $10 million in new spending. Anderson’s proposal funds about $692,000 of it, and says no to new vehicles, first responder drones, tree-trimming equipment and 15 of the 17 full-time positions requested. Two positions do make the cut, including a building and facilities director, a job Anderson says will centralize contracts across the city’s aging buildings and pay for part of itself. A temporary 10% cut to citywide supplies and services, first imposed in 2025, stays in place for a third year.

Holding the levy flat, he said, would mean cutting staff, buying no new plows or snow blowers and accepting slower service from police, streets and fire. Personnel accounts for 83% of the property tax budget, and cost-of-living raises push that up every year. About 53% of the city’s fleet is past its 20-year life cycle.

The full budget proposal is posted on the city’s website.

Annual increase by estimated market value:
$100,000 home: $40
$200,000 home: $110
$252,700 home (median): $146
$300,000 home: $182
$400,000 home: $252
$500,000 home: $320

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