On Monday the Fort Myers Beach Town Council voted 4-1 to set the tentative 2025-2026 millage rate at $1.25 of $1,000 of assessed property value, an increase of 26%. That rate can be reduced over the next two months as the council meets and digs deeper into the budget. They cannot vote for a higher rate. The current rate is .99. The town has not raised the millage rate since before Hurricane Ian.
Councilman John King voted against the proposed rate increase.
Finance Director Joe Onzik reported that the town is facing a $1.2 million budget shortfall heading into the 2025-2026 fiscal year.
The millage increase to 1.25 will bring in an additional $1,191,486. The town has been using a $12 million loan from the state of Florida to fill in yearly budget shortfalls. That loan also restricts what the town can do, like capital projects, because any additional revenue the town brings in must be used to pay back the loan. While there is hope the loan will eventually be forgiven that has not happened as of yet. As of now the loan must be paid back by 2033 and the interest rate is 10%.
The beach will see more revenue from higher property tax values. Last month Lee County Property Appraiser Matt Caldwell reported that property values on Fort Myers Beach increased 12% over the previous year. Caldwell says the taxable property value total on Fort Myers Beach is $4.6 billion, $514,240 more than 2024-2025. That surpasses the total property value number from 2022, before Hurricane Ian. Onzik said the higher property values will bring the town an additional $670,000 next year. The town will also see an additional $617,000 in non ad-valorum revenue. Where the town is seeing less money include from the public service tax ($300,000), the state commission tax ($260,000), the half-cent sales tax ($120,000) and state revenue sharing ($60,000).
A tentative millage rate must be adopted by the Town Council and submitted to the County Property Appraiser prior to today. Once the tentative millage rate has been set it cannot be increased, only reduced.
The town has to hold 2 budge public hearings after 5PM before approving a final budget, in addition to discussing the budget at upcoming Town Council meetings. The first budget hearing is September 11, 2025 at 5:01 pm, and the second budget hearing is September 24, 2025 at 5:01 pm. The budget public hearings will be held in the new town hall building at 6231 Estero Boulevard.
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$782,000 for Estero landscape maintenance?? Yeah, don’t think we’re getting our money’s worth on that one……Place still looks like post WW2 Europe.
How do the people in charge sleep at night. They won’t make the hard choices. Increase rate to pay off the loan? If the loan were to be forgiven, as you say is a possibility, then where would the increased revenue go? Back to the taxpayers? Real funny! Big shots spending other peoples money!
They count greenbacks instead of sheep.
Not sure what FMB was like when the county was running it, but my understanding is that it became its own city to, 1 thing, control the building on FMB. Well council has sucked at that and now the r sucking wind at finances. Maybe FMB should go back to being run by the county.
I would like to see the books audited to show what the money was spent on. How many times have we bought sand that ended up in our garages time after time? How about turtle lights? Since Ian, sand and turtle lights have been the main focus and they still are not completed. We are still walking around/driving in the dark. How about the “studies” that we funded to figure out where the traffic is coming from or whatever other pet project received our money poured into it? What about the boat that was stolen because employees failed to lock it up? Were they terminated? Did they find the boat? Catch the thieves? How about the last hurricane and the staff left 5-6 vehicles on the beach instead of moving them to higher ground? Who made that decision? How much did that cost us? I know people will think “that’s what insurance is for” but then we pay higher rates because of it. This town is so poorly run and it is the tax payer that pays for the bad decisions. No one is held accountable. Our homes are plummeting yet the assessment has gone up. Taxes up, and insurances up and yet the town is still a mess. What is the plan to reimburse all the property owners for the lost FEMA discount? It cost me $1,000 more already. I’m disgusted.
Great questions all.
There’s a need for voters to think about all of it
Can’t ask for more money from property owners when you lost our FEMA flood discount. Comply with FEMA, get it back and then we consider it. Also, why can’t the town replace/maintain the grass between the road and the sidewalks? It looks terrible. Mayor said garden club is supposed to do it? People are going to expect a lot if taxes go up.
If this town was your business it would have closed down. Spending tax dollars like you have an open credit card on file. Buying property, sand dunes, renourishment, turtle lights $$$$$. I realize we receive a lot of grants, but no one even mentioned the 250,000 were on the hook for with the Mooring Field. How will families ever come back to this island. We will be one big resort without a community. And if you want a toll on the bridge move to Sanibel. People who don’t live on this island but work here, have a hard enough time as it is.
Exactly and the $250,000 for the mooring field is just a magnet for rickety old, dilapidated boats that the homeless live in. Cape Coral didn’t want all the unsightly boats, so naturally, FMB said ” hey we will fund the mooring field so we can attract more dilapidated boats.” We all know who lives on the boats and yes, we funded that and still fund it. The one sailboat that laid on it’s side for months before Ian, was reportedly going to cost us 29K to remove it. That was per the Coast Guard. It was removed and then came Ian. I would love to see how many of those boats are actually sea worthy.
Always falls on the backs of property owners.
There are plenty of ways to increase income for the town than to burden home owners.
What about selling the old town hall lot????? Or better yet why not develop it with a 17 story condo.. that will raise $ for the town…
I called this one month after Ian destroyed the island. The town is broke. No way any town can afford to rebuild such devastation. Even after they raise taxes the will still be short. The loans taken out must be repaid. Where will that come from. Where will the infrastructure under time square, which was to be done before Ian hit, money comes from where. We business owners on the square questioned this prior to Ian. Now before anyone does anything all that needs done. How forgetful we are when it comes to what’s under the ground that’s still destroyed. Doesn’t matter who is on the council, this is a monumental task.
Where do all the hourly parking fees go? Are there other ways to raise revenue? What about a FMB road fee for rental cars that park at the island hotels? Raise revenue and deter driving on the island.
Raise Taxes — always the quick fix !!
Do your work —
Cut the Budget —
just like all of us do – all the time !
Many are still recovering from the past 2 hurricanes, and the FMB council wants to increase taxes by that percentage???? No wonder our beloved FMB is becoming a place for the rich only……………sad.
Seems like the council and mayor just want wealthy people for the future of our beach.. Just look at the homes being built every thing looks like 5 million and up.
Make a Toll Bridge, Locals/residents get a deep discount and overcharge the tourists, THEY WILL PAY; Sanibel & Cape Coral have tolls, and the Pier in Clearwater charges entry to see the sunset. Yes, charge the tourists to enter the beach, the pier, and the parking. Yep!!
The town doesn’t own the bridge and wouldn’t receive the toll dollars. It has been brought up again as recently as last winter. The county said no…. And no businesses wanted it either.
ok, Gotcha, Thxs
“Toll bridge” 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Then raise the Hotel room tax on tourists, they will still pay $11.00 for a mojito 🙂 lol
Bad idea Bridge toll..Verrazano bridge started at.50 now 20.00 round trip..and what about all the seasonal owners .Who are not full time residents ???
Verrazano!?!?! Lol, at least for $ 20.00, you get a good Bagel, although Mom’s Biscuits are the best!
DR
DR. Town cannot toll the bridge Built by the with state money.
The state said no years ago.
Sanibel bridge was built by the county. Since it used only county money it could toll that bridge.
Gotcha Lee, Thanks… Off Topic, but where did the thinking come from that, since a hurricane, everything FMB incorporated and believed in has changed?
There was NO reason for a monstrosity of a bridge on the south end. It will just create a bottleneck onto the island. FMB does not have yachts for deep water like the east coast of FL. With no fiscal responsibility THIS HAPPENS!
The town had nothing to do with the south. They also did not contract for it or pay for it.
The new bridge is needed for the new Ritz Carlton on the other side of the bay. But shhhhhh! We’re not supposed to know this
If we are speaking of the bridge over San Carlos, are you saying it’s going to be built on state park land? Or is this hearsay to stir the pot?
A gradual increase increase would make more sense and be less of a burden to property owners and developers, who may look elsewhere because of this.