That's right, you read it correctly: 70 percent.
What that means is that the owner of a $500,000 home will see the city portion of the tax bill go up $166 when the property tax notice arrives in the mailbox at this time next year.
Naturally, we feel sorry for taxpayers, especially longtime residents who are retired and living on fixed incomes. We would like to find a villain and give him what for.
Unfortunately, in this story, villains are in short supply.
It is tempting to blame the city's rapid growth, all those pricey McMansions going up. Draper's population in 1990 was only 7,150. In 2000 it was 25,220 and today it is estimated to be about 37,000.
But Draper's impact fees are some of the highest around, which means that newcomers are kicking in extra money up front to pay for police officers, firefighters, roads, parks, water and stormwater systems.
What hasn't changed over the years is the basic property tax. In fact, last week was the first time the city has raised it above the state-certified rate since the city was incorporated back in 1978.
You could blame past city councils for not building in more gradual increases to keep up with the demands of a maturing city to replace aging streets and grow city services in parallel with the population. But you also could praise those past councils for holding the line against tax increases.
Even with the huge tax hike, Draper's combined equalized property tax rate will remain the fourth-lowest among Utah cities of comparable size, according to city finance director Michael Sears. He notes that Draper probably is now the 16th-largest city in the state. He compared its tax rate with those of cities with populations of 10,000 plus or minus that of Draper.
Draper is not the cozy farm community of recent memory. It's become another suburban city along the Wasatch Front. The only way to maintain roads and services, to say nothing of preserving open space, as the city has recently done in Corner Canyon, is with bigger revenues.
A growing tax base provides some of that. When that's not enough, tax rates sometimes must grow, too. In another 29 years, Draper may raise rates again. Or even reduce them.
Even with the huge tax hike, Draper's combined equalized property tax rate will remain the fourth-lowest among Utah cities of comparable size.
