Auburn Council Adopts $17.1 Million Budget with a Levy Rate Dip

The Auburn City Council adopted a $17.1 million budget for the 2026-27 fiscal year Sept. 22. It also set a property tax request that rises about 3%, but the city's levy rate will go down slightly because property values grew faster.
The council voted 4-1 to approve the budget, 4-1 to pass the annual appropriation ordinance and 4-1 to set the property tax request at $739,102, about $20,000 more than last year's $719,102. Council members Tom Clark, Rick Janssen, Brian Lavigne and Nathan Seitz voted yes all three times. Council Member Shawn Clark voted no. Council Member Johnny Curttright abstained on each vote. When Mayor Chris Erickson asked whether there was a reason for the abstentions, Curttright said he "wasn’t familiar with what was going on."
Auburn's taxable valuation rose about 4% to $200.6 million. As a result, the city levy will fall from about 37.2 cents to 36.8 cents per $100 of valuation, a 1% drop. For a home valued at $100,000, the city's share of the property tax bill would go from about $372 to $368.
The budget sets spending and transfers at $17,149,799, about 14% less than last year's $19.9 million.
City Administrator Crystal Dunekacke walked the council through the budget at a public hearing before the vote. She said the budget works as a plan rather than a promise to spend. Putting a project in the budget gives the city legal authority to spend money on it, including grants and other outside funds, but bids and contracts still come to the council for approval.
"Just because it's in the budget doesn't mean it's necessarily going to be spent," Dunekacke said. 
Tax trends
Dunekacke said the city has kept its property tax asking low even as values climbed. Over the past 10 years, Auburn's taxable valuation grew 45.6% while its property tax request grew 13.9%. If the request had kept pace with valuation, the city would be asking for about $284,000 more this year, or $915,207 total, according to her presentation.
Auburn's request works out to $207.23 per resident. Of the eight other cities in her comparison of similarly sized cities, only Falls City was lower, at $196.97. Tecumseh was at $274.26, Nebraska City at $369.24 and Syracuse at $421.52. The comparison also included Aurora, Broken Bow, David City and Minden.
State law caps property tax growth. Auburn could have raised its request to $739,740 without joining a joint public hearing or mailing postcard notices to taxpayers, and the city's request comes in just under that line. A second state calculation that factors in inflation would have allowed a request of up to $763,178. The city left about $24,000 of that authority unused for future years.
The budget includes 5% raises for full-time employees and 2.5% raises for part-time employees, which the council approved at its previous meeting.
Pool and courts
The largest project in the budget is the renovation of the city pool and sports courts. The city has a $600,000 Land and Water Conservation Fund grant through the National Park Service, a $562,000 Civic and Community Center Financing Fund grant from the state and a $562,000 city match, for a total of $1.724 million.
The pool will get a new pump, filter, heater, and chemical systems. The baby pool will become an aquatic play area with splash pad features, and the project adds zero entry, shade, and fully restores the existing slide. At the courts, two tennis courts will become four pickleball courts. One tennis court and two basketball courts will remain, and all of the courts will get refinished surfaces and new nets, hoops, fencing and lighting.
The projects have not been bid yet, so the budget uses engineers' estimates. Dunekacke said those include 15% to 20% for contingencies. If bids come in higher, the city could look to CRA money, more grants, or more city funds, or drop optional items from the bids.
The pool's capital improvements line is budgeted at $2.26 million, and the parks line at $426,600. The parks line also covers batting cage improvements at the rec complex, irrigation, scoreboard upgrades, and equipment.
Other changes
The city's law enforcement contract with the Nemaha County Sheriff's Office is budgeted at $507,415, up from $468,136. The current contract expires at the end of December, and a new one is expected to come to the council next month.
The fire department budget includes $50,000 to hire an engineer to plan a new fire hall. The work would include designs, bid documents, possible funding sources and what debt payments might look like. Dunekacke called it the first step toward the project.
Software subscriptions rise to $20,000 from $14,344. The increase will put permit and registration forms online so residents can upload documents outside office hours.
The street department's capital improvements budget drops to $205,000 from $823,180, while debt payments rise to $342,628 from $167,698. The city has hired an engineer to study drainage and storm sewer problems on L Street. As approved in the last meeting, the city’s one- and six-year road plan has nothing listed on the one-year plan.
The senior center's equipment budget rises to $5,000 from $2,000 to cover repairs to aging refrigerators and freezers. Airport capital outlay costs double to $50,000.
Council questions
Before voting no, Shawn Clark asked about several line items. Economic development is budgeted at $87,000 through a contract with Grow Auburn.
Shawn Clark also asked how much city tax money goes to the Creative District, which is budgeted at $115,000, up from $100,000. Dunekacke said the district's money is mostly carryover and outside grants, not city property tax dollars. She said the city's agreement with the chamber pays for part of a staff member's time on tourism, which supports some Creative District work.
Shawn Clark also asked for a dollar figure on the $513,187 community development fund. Dunekacke said the fund holds downtown revitalization money from past CDBG [loan repayments], and there are restrictions on how it can be used. "There's nothing new in there," she said.
The council voted to suspend the rule requiring ordinances to be read at three separate meetings. That let the appropriation ordinance pass the same night.
No members of the public spoke at either hearing. Aside from council members and city staff, the only people attending were a reporter and a candidate running for office.
The new fiscal year begins Oct. 1 and the next regularly scheduled council meeting will be held at 7 p.m. on October 12 at Auburn City Hall.