City officials unveiled $3 million worth of improvements to Fort Wayne Parks on Monday afternoon, the latest in what is expected to be a parade of announcements on how the city’s new income tax money will be spent.
City Council members June 25 approved raising the local option income tax from 1 percent to 1.35 percent, which will generate about $13.5 million a year.
The tax increase takes effect Oct. 1 and is meant to close a budget gap caused by property tax caps and pay for projects and services officials say are needed but currently unaffordable.
Among the needs, the city said, was an additional $3 million a year to maintain the beloved park system. Now, they say, those needs can be met.
“This is the most significant event to happen to the park system since … well maybe in its history,” Parks Director Al Moll said. “This will ensure the park system is taken care of long after we’re here.”
Moll said every poll, every survey taken shows that Fort Wayne residents love the parks and want to maintain them. The new money, he said, means that will happen, and the city won’t have to go into debt.
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