Whitefish Bay approves a tax increase above its goal to pay for controversial new position

Whitefish Bay’s village board has approved a 2.73% increase in village taxes. The increase, related primarily to a new, controversial role in village government, surpassed the board's fiscal strategy target of 2.5%.

The board voted 5-2 on Nov. 20 to approve the village's 2024 budget, which came after lengthy discussions on a significant new expense ― the community development director role ― and a failed vote to remove it.

Trustees Jay Saunders and Tara Serebin voted against the budget, objecting to the increase above the village’s target tax increase of 2.5%.

The 2.5% figure was a fiscal strategy approved by the board in 2016. For years, the board successfully kept all increases at or below that target and even reaffirmed the strategy two years ago, Village Board President Kevin Buckley said.

But then came the 2023 budget, which saw the increase creep up to 2.91%.

The village’s new community development director position, which has drawn heightened scrutiny in the months since the board approved the role in July, is the largest source of the budget’s increase, said Buckley, costing the village $139,954 in 2024.

While this budget increase is lower than last year, it's still above the village board's target.

In an email to the Journal Sentinel after the meeting, Trustee Raisa Koltun said the difference between 2.5% and 2.7% is an impact of $20 on an average household.

Koltun and Buckley voted for the budget, as did trustees Anna Kasper, Jay Balachandran and Jacob Haller.

Koltun said the board's support for the role would result in bike and pedestrian safety improvements, economic development on Silver Spring Drive and improved park amenities.

"This position is especially critical now to help the village look for ways to diversify our revenue base so we can control and limit property tax increases in the future," she said.

Motion to remove the community development director position failed

In a 4-3 vote, the village board rejected a motion that would have removed the community development director position, salary, and benefits from the 2024 budget.

The board also rejected an amendment to the motion that would have added a $20,000 consulting line item to the budget.

The consultant would have been hired specifically to guide the village through strategic planning for a potential community development director role, as well as assess the village’s current staffing levels.

Expressing his support for removing the position from the budget, Buckley said the community development director has divided the board and community.

While a community development director role still intrigues him, he said the board hasn’t done its homework.

“We haven't analyzed our current staffing levels, we haven't justified adding a full-time position that will remain in the budget for year after year after year,” he said.

Buckley also noted the board still doesn’t have a designated set of projects for the new hire to pursue.

Serebin said the role’s focus on redevelopment conflicts with another village-wide concern of affordability. She explained that redeveloping existing infrastructure would contribute to pricing people out of an already-expensive area.

“Some of those people are not going to be able to come back and afford the same unit in that spot," Serebin said. “We throw around affordable housing without actually doing the work to figure out how we can keep things affordable.”

The village posted a hiring notice for the role Oct. 10 and stopped accepting applications Nov. 3.

Contact Claudia Levens at clevens@gannett.com. Follow her on X at @levensc13.

Editor's note: This story was updated to provide additional information on the budget vote and clarification on the tax increase and its impact.