Maggie budgets for ‘needs, not wants’
Hit harder than some but not as hard as others by Hurricane Helene, the Town of Maggie Valley still saw substantial damage. Cory Vaillancourt photo
Maggie Valley’s proposed budget for the 2025-26 fiscal year reflects a cautious and calculated approach, with officials holding the line on taxes but planning modest increases to some service fees.
“This is a year of needs, not wants,” said Town Manager Vicki Best during an April 11 preliminary budget presentation at Maggie Valley’s town hall.
The proposed budget totals $4.1 million in general fund revenue, an uptick from the current year’s $3.8 million with no change to the property tax rate and no planned use of fund balance. At 40 cents per $100 in assessed value, Maggie Valley’s property tax rate remains lower than 60% of North Carolina’s municipal governments. Based upon a collection rate of 97.57%, the town will raise more than $2 million from property taxes, its largest revenue source.
Sales tax revenues, the town’s second largest revenue source, are projected to rise by 2% — a conservative estimate despite an actual increase of 3.78% over the first eight months of the current fiscal year, which began July 1, 2024. Fortunately, sales tax distributions to the town do not appear to have suffered greatly from the impact of Hurricane Helene last September.
Additionally, the town has no real debt against its general fund, except for a $5,500 yearly copier lease.
No fee increases are proposed for motor vehicles, planning and zoning, solid waste or the festival grounds, however there is a proposed 3% increase for the sewer fee.
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“We’re going to continue to try to see slower gains annually, as opposed to waiting five years,” Mayor Mike Eveland said of the long-term strategy to avoid dramatic rate hikes. “I think with our user fees, that’s what we’ve been doing over the last four or five years.”
The town’s sewer fund totals $1.23 million, and the only existing debt — $174,000 related to a prior sewer expansion — is scheduled to be paid off in 2028. No new sewer-related debt is proposed, and capital projects have been put on hold in favor of continued repair work stemming from storm damage.
Where the town is moving forward, it is doing so thoughtfully, with a focus on personnel and equipment.
Town employees will see a 3% cost-of-living adjustment totaling $53,633, based on the January consumer price index year-over-year increase. The town also plans to undertake a comprehensive pay study for the first time since 2019, part of a broader effort to maintain competitiveness in employee compensation and retain talent across all departments.
Rising health care costs have the town preparing for a potential 5% increase in premiums, budgeting a total of $407,901 to continue offering 100% coverage for employees and 80% coverage for dependents.
There are currently 31 employees on the town’s payroll, including seven administrative staff, 15 police officers, five public works employees and four sewer department personnel. No new hires have been requested in this budget cycle.
Public safety remains a priority in the upcoming budget, with the purchase of two new police vehicles at a cost of $55,300 and the addition of a $7,300 license plate reader. Police Chief Matthew Boger emphasized that the technology is more than just a crime-fighting tool.
“It’s not always about criminal activity,” said Boger, who recounted a recent incident where the police department was able to locate a missing person. “It helps us … have more awareness to missing people with Alzheimer’s, dementia, that drive away and that kind of thing. We have a way to find resolution in a positive manner for those families.”
Elsewhere in infrastructure, the town will move forward with the repaving of Panoramic Loop. Town officials said additional streets are expected to be added to Maggie Valley’s road system during the 2025-26 fiscal year.
While no major new capital projects are included in the budget, the town continues to work through extensive storm-related damage caused by Tropical Storm Helene. With an estimated $4.3 million in damages, Maggie Valley has already started work on the Fox Run Pipe Bridge and has completed repairs to the Flossie White room at town hall. Debris removal from public rights-of-way is also complete.
Engineering design for future sewer projects is expected to begin soon, and public works staff have already conducted extensive repairs to parks and greenways. The town has submitted reimbursement requests to FEMA totaling between $40,000 and $50,000, but officials expect a 60- to 90-day delay before funds are received. Projects not yet submitted now could cost more, as FEMA rejected calls from Gov. Josh Stein to extend the 100% federal funding of recovery expenses. The FEMA decision came after the town’s budget meeting.
Alderman Jim Owens was not at the meeting due to illness. Alderman Phillip Wight was absent as well, but Best said the town would schedule an additional work session for the budget, and hopefully pass whatever aldermen decide to adopt at the town’s regular June 10 meeting. By law, municipal budgets must be passed before July 1.
