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North Castle Preliminary Budget Raises Taxes

ARMONK, N.Y. – The 2012 preliminary budget for the town of North Castle raises taxes for the average household in town and exceeds the state-mandated 2 percent tax cap.

Town Supervisor Howard Arden and the North Castle Town Board will discuss the town's preliminary budget this week.

Town Supervisor Howard Arden and the North Castle Town Board will discuss the town's preliminary budget this week.

Photo Credit: Robert Michelin

In the $29 million proposed budget, the average market value home in North Castle, at around $909,000, will pay about $3,007 in taxes, which is up by around $131 from last year. The budget has a tax levy increase of 3.79 percent, which is above the 2 percent tax cap, but Town Administrator Joan Goldberg said the town is committed to cutting more from the budget before adopting it.

Goldberg said the town has not determined what areas of the budget will be looked at to trim the approximately $146,000 to get under the cap.

"There's two ways that the town can lower the tax levy and that's either by cutting expenses or finding further revenue streams," Goldberg said. "So I think it will be a combination of both."

Goldberg said the budget includes a plan to transfer one employee in the town's building department from full time to part time. Goldberg’s role as Town Administrator is the only new full-time employee in the budget; the town added a part-time employee in the Town Administrator office as well. Since 2007, North Castle has eliminated 24 full-time employees and seven part-time employees, or 19 percent of the total staff.

The budget also includes $269,000 in capital expenses. Those expenses include $59,000 for two new police cars and $60,000 for a new dump truck with a plow for the town's parks department.

The North Castle Town Board will discuss the preliminary budget at its public meeting on Wednesday, Nov. 28. Goldberg said it is anticipated that the board will not adopt the budget until December. Wednesday's meeting will begin at 7:30 p.m. at Town Hall in Armonk.

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