Why St. Cloud’s mayor is proposing a 3.75% property tax hike

The city of St. Cloud is considering a proposal from its mayor to raise property taxes by 3.75% to retain city staff, including police officers and firefighters.

“Yeah, I’d like to see accountability,” eight-year homeowner and St. Cloud resident Felicia Smith said. “I’d like it to be very transparent as to what the money is going to.”

Smith, a mother of two, told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS that she is keeping an eye on the city’s proposed 3.75% property tax increase.

If approved, it would be added on top of a 2.69% increase tied to voter-approved fire department funding.

The total for taxpayers would be a 6.44% increase in property taxes, around a $146 increase for a median home in St. Cloud, valued at $252,700.

“I don’t really have much to say on it, because my taxes have increased,” Smith says. “Like the value of my property has increased, and i...