The city's proposed 2007-2008 budget would increase that rate by nearly 90 percent - inflating the city's income by nearly $3 million. For an owner of a $500,000 home, that would translate to an annual $213 property-tax bump.

Financial Director Michael Sears said the city needs the cash to pay for public safety and infrastructure projects in the city of 37,000 at the southeast end of the Salt Lake Valley.

At its current rate, city projections show Draper would be $12.5 million short of funding expected infrastructure and public safety needs by 2010.

"I would literally describe our financial situation as a near-crisis situation," said Councilman Jeff Stenquist. Sears said the city's water, storm-water and irrigation systems are "woefully inadequate," and, with asphalt prices skyrocketing, road bills will soar.

Stenquist said the city's current property-tax rate is too low. He sees the hike as a "necessary evil."

"We'll still be much lower than some of the cities nearby," he said. "Right now, we're just so extremely low, we're completely out of balance. I think that our residents deserve a high level of service, but we need to understand that comes at a cost."

If the city chooses not to increase the property-tax rate, its options could include further delaying infrastructure improvements and public safety staffing, installing a separate public-safety-services fee or reducing levels of service.

But Councilwoman Stephanie Davis said the city needs a more moderate property-tax hike of about 50 percent, and, like her colleague Bill Colbert, she would not support a tax-hike - unless it were needed to protect public safety.

The budget, however, proposes to cut the fire department from four fighters down to three. That, Davis said, would force the city to pay back a grant.

Meanwhile, the city would give more than $3 million to an amphitheater project that could require $200,000 annually to maintain.

"I cannot support a tax increase that reduces the number of firefighters in our community when, somehow, money can be found to maintain an indoor auditorium for entertainment," Davis said.

Colbert said he is not yet ready for such a massive boost in property taxes.

"If we're going to take money out of people's pockets, we better be doing more and seeing what nonessentials we can reduce without reducing the quality of life in the community," Colbert said, adding that he wants the city to depend more on revenue from growth and investments in commercial and retail development, despite the sales-dependent risks.

Even with Draper's proposed increase, its property-tax rate would still be lower than many of its neighbors, including Cottonwood Heights, Lehi, American Fork, Midvale, Pleasant Grove, Herriman, South Jordan, Cedar Hills and Holladay.

"We have a lot of pride being near the bottom of the list in tax rates for the Wasatch Front," Colbert said.

sgehrke@sltrib.com