5 Ways The 2019 Wauwatosa City Budget Will Affect You

WAUWATOSA, WI -- Wauwatosa's city budget was approved by the Common Council in Nov. 2018. There will be a number of changes in 2019. Some of the changes will take place behind-the-scenes, as officials aim to streamline a number of city administrative tasks. Other changes will show up on your tax bill, on the street corner or on the curb in front of your residence.

Here are 5 things you can expect in 2019:

1

The average Wauwatosa homeowner, which is about $224,000 in home value, will have a tax increase of $44.64 for the city’s portion of the tax bill.

2

The City of Wauwatosa will replace the least energy efficient street lights on North Ave. with LED lights, creating energy savings. Officials say they plan to use the energy savings to enhance the city's maintenance budgets at public buildings, addressing deferred maintenance without increasing the budget.

3

Likewise, Wauwatosa anticipates replacing the least efficient lights in the Wauwatosa Public Library, and use the energy savings from this project to perform additional energy efficiency upgrades in future years.

4

City officials plan to conduct a complete analysis of Wauwatosa's trash, recycling, and yard waste collection, as well as drop-off services at Public Works. The intent of this analysis is to identify areas in which the city can be more efficient and lower collection costs.

5

In behind-the-scenes planning, city officials anticipate beginning a multi-year implementation of the Wauwatosa's new Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system. This will result in more efficient internal work processes for city staff and also allow our residents to complete more transactions online, officials say.

Patch File Photo by Scott Anderson