By Mary Thurwachter
Beachgoers will pay a little more at parking meters in Lantana, as the Town Council voted July 10 to raise the hourly fee from $1.50 to $2.
The new rate, which goes into effect Oct. 1, also applies to other paid parking spaces in town, including those at Bicentennial Park, Sportsman’s Park and Kayak Park.
Finance Director Stephen Kaplan says that “even with the rate hike, the town is still below market for the same or similar service in comparison to many of our surrounding municipalities.”
For example, hourly parking costs are $3 at Lake Worth Beach, $5 in Palm Beach, $3 on State Road A1A in Delray Beach and $1.50 at Boynton Beach’s public beach.
The parking fee has been $1.50 in Lantana since June 2009. Three parking kiosks were added in 2017 and they still take quarters as well as credit card payments.
This year, parking fees are expected to bring in $435,000, according to Kaplan. With the higher rate, the town anticipates raising an additional $145,000 next year.
Tax rate, budget hearings
The Town Council set the town’s proposed tax rate at $3.75 per $1,000 of assessed taxable value — the same rate as last year. The first budget hearing is set for 5:30 p.m. Sept. 11, with a second and final hearing scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Sept. 20. The rate cannot go higher, but the Town Council could decrease it, although that is unlikely.
While the $3.75 rate is not changing, it will amount to a property tax increase because of rising property values, which have gone up about 12% this year for properties in town (not including new construction). The owners of an average homesteaded house valued last year at $360,000 would see their taxable value increase to $370,800 (the maximum 3% increase allowed), which Kaplan says means they would pay about $40 more in town taxes.
For an average non-homesteaded property with the same $360,000 value last year, the taxable value would rise to $396,000 (the maximum 10% increase allowed), which means the property owner would pay $135 more in town taxes under the current proposal.
Anticipated property tax revenues in the new budget are $6,414,754, an increase of $939,313 compared to this year’s budgeted revenue of $5,475,441. Property taxes are projected to account for 39.1% of the town’s anticipated revenues in the 2024 fiscal year that starts Oct. 1, compared to their being 36.6% of revenues in the current fiscal year.
Fencing at cemetery
On another matter, the council approved paying $59,052 for Tropic Fence, Inc. to install a decorative fence around the historic Evergreen Cemetery at the intersection of North Arnold Avenue and West Lantana Road.
Money to pay for the fence comes from the estate of Dwight Bradshaw, who left funds for the project to the Lantana Historical Society. Bradshaw, who died in February 2021, was one of the original members of the Historical Society.
Established in 1892 as a final resting spot for local families, the land was purchased by Lantana founder M.B. Lyman, the town’s first postmaster.
The fence isn’t the only improvement being made at the cemetery. Mike Marin, an 18-year-old Lantana resident, earned his Eagle Scout rank after making improvements at the cemetery — including adding a plaque showing the locations of all the people buried there. In June, Marin received a proclamation from the Town Council in recognition of his work.
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