Highland Heights Mayor Chuck Brunello, Jr. delivered his annual state-of-the-city address Thursday (Aug. 21) in City Council chambers. With a 5.9-mill levy on the November ballot, the mayor's talk centered on the city's finances, and how city money is spent.
Highland Heights Mayor Chuck Brunello, Jr. listens to a resident's question after delivering his annual state-of-the-city address on Thursday.HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ohio -- In delivering his annual state-of-the-city address, Mayor Chuck Brunello, Jr.
spoke of the good things -- Highland Heights’ number 5 ranking by Cleveland Magazine of Cleveland’s top 20 suburbs; Cleveland Crain’s Business naming it one of the 20 wealthiest suburbs; its fine safety forces; the many road repairs completed in 2024; and other highlights. But it was clear that the main point of the address was explaining the city’s current financial situation, and its need for residents to approve in November a 5.9-mill safety services levy. Brunello shared financial figures with those gathered Thursday in City Council chambers, and, in a first, took questions from the audience following his address. Just five minutes into his nearly 40-minute talk, Brunello turned to finances, telling his audience that the city now has a $4.8-million general fund balance and that local city taxes collected were down in 2024 by $406,000 , when compared to 2023.-- “Overall expenses were up $840,000 over 2023, and revenues were down $188,000 over 2023.” -- And, “The city’s peak revenue occurred in 2018 at $14.5 million. Revenue in 2024 was $13.9 million. To put this in perspective, our expenses in 2018 were $14.3 million. Expenses in 2024 were $15.1 million, which is only a 5.8-percent increase since 2018.” After covering other city business, Brunello returned in closing to the subject of finances, and specifically the safety services levy. The proposed levy, at 5.9 mills per $1 of property evaluation, amounts to $207 for each $100,000 of a property’s county-appraised value. That equates to a $17 per month increase for each $100,000 of valuation.If deficit spending continues at its rate of about $2 million per year, Brunello stated, the city’s $4.8-million general fund could be wiped out by 2026. The state auditor’s office does not allow city personnel to advocate for the passage of a levy, so Brunello said he would stick to the facts in explaining the city’s circumstances. "The bottom line is that we have collected the same property tax rate since 1967, yes, 1967, which is by far the lowest in the county,“ Brunello said. ”Please understand that property tax covers only 6-7 percent of our budget. “Income tax revenues fund over 80 percent of our budget, but that revenue has declined due to lasting changes in the post-pandemic workplace with more people working from home.” Brunello noted that state funding is not at the levels it once was, and that, in 2013, the state eliminated the estate tax, which had been bringing the city, on average, $500,000 per year. Highland Heights now collects from its property owners 4 mills, only 2.2 mills of which goes towards the city’s general operating expenses, and which total but 6.5 percent of its general fund revenue. Should residents approve the first millage increase in 58 years on Nov. 4, Brunello said that all $3.3 million derived from the levy would be spent on safety services. "The reality is that without new revenue, we will necessarily see significant changes to our safety services offerings, as well as other city services,“ he said. ”It is also worth mentioning that the number of calls to our various safety services has been increasing for years and will continue to do so as our population ages." More than two years ago, City Council acted to prohibit any further nursing homes from doing business in Highland Heights. The most recent nursing facility to open in Highland Heights, Bishop Road’s Vitalia, in 2024, brought the total of such facilities to four, with a cumulative 350 beds. From these facilities comes a large of amount of calls to the fire department, requiring EMS services and transports to hospitals. Upon questioning from a woman in Thursday’s audience, Fire Chief William Turner said that the four facilities account for as much as 25 percent of EMS calls annually. The fire department usually has four firefighters/paramedics on duty and, thus, often needs mutual aid assistance from other communities’ fire departments to handle the workload. Brunello and Turner said they are seeking creative ways to deal with these costs, but that those living in nursing facilities must receive services like any other resident. Adding more safety forces is costly to any community. “If the levy fails,” Brunello said during his address, “we will need to reduce our annual budget by $2 million. Unfortunately, since our police, fire and EMS are 60 percent of the budget, they would necessarily bear some of the hard reductions, which could result in reduced staffing, fewer patrols, slower response times, delayed equipment upgrades, and difficulty recruiting new officers.” During the question-and-answer period, however, Brunello told a resident, “My intent is not to lay off any person.” Brunello said that if the levy fails, he would seek to make reductions in spending in various areas, such as reducing costs at or closing the city’s community center, eliminating annual deer culling , or perhaps reducing the amount of capital improvements made. Brunello pointed out that recreation services would not be reduced, as that department operates on its own and does so in the black. Collected millage is divided up among local school districts, which receive the lqargest share, the city, the county, and the county library. As an example, Brunello showed on the chambers’ large screen a slide that has his home valued at $354,000. The slide showed that only $450 of the millage he pays goes toward city services, with more than $4,000 going towards Mayfield City Schools, more than $1,700 to the county, and $249 to the county library. Brunello said that he receives plenty of city services for the $450, as do residents for the millage they pay. Some in the audience agreed that millage now paid is a good deal for the safety services, road work, garbage collection, and other services received. In a recent city survey, Highland Heights safety services received a 5-star rating from residents. When a resident thanked city department heads on Thursday for the services they provide, the audience applauded. Underlining the importance of the levy, question-and-answer periods about it will be scheduled prior to council meetings in September so residents can learn and ask questions. Brunello also urged residents to visit the city’s website where all of the financial figures presented Thursday are available for viewing. That levy information can be found If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation.and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our
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