Members of the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board (MPRB) voted to increase tax collection at their meeting on Tuesday.

The MPRB said that the request for an increase in the levy of 10.07% had been submitted to the Board of Estimate and Taxation (BET).

According to the MPRB, the increase would be used to maintain the park’s current level of service and to maintain the park facilities.

RELATED: Minneapolis Parks Board approves new contract for park employees

“The priority of this committee is to take care of the parks we own and continue to provide the park services that Minneapolis residents use and that have made us one of the best park systems in the country,” said Meg Forney, president of the MPRB.

If the MPRB tax increase is adopted, it will result in an overall increase in the city’s property tax of 1.76%.

According to the MPRB, this would equate to an annual property tax increase of about $33 for owners of a home valued at average $323,000.

The MPRB has divided the levy into four elements for which the levy is to be used:

• First, current benefit levels must be maintained. This includes $3,132,000 for wage and benefit adjustments and $727,568 for “inflationary pressures.”
• Second, $566,000 for system equity investments to provide standard service levels for Graco Park ($557,000), scheduled to open in late 2024, and skate parks ($9,000).
• Third, the MPRB announced that $150,000 would be used to “reduce barriers to program participation.”
• Fourth, $196,000 to support the Board’s adoption of Strategic Direction D – also called “Caring for parks to meet evolving needs and practices.”

Park Asset Investment Services provides professional management support in identifying and implementing an asset management lifecycle for all asset types within their system.

“We provide parks and amenities to enrich the life of every Minneapolis resident,” said Al Bangoura, MPRB director. “With more than 32 million visitors to the park system each year, we must maintain current levels of service and invest in monitoring, evaluating and maintaining park assets in nearly 200 parks across the city.”

Pursuant to state law, the BET sets the maximum tax burden for MPRB. The BET is expected to set the maximum property tax burden on September 18, 2024.

If approved by the BET, a draft budget for 2025 based on the property tax increase will be presented on October 23.

The board will then review the budget and adopt the tax levy and the 2025 budget on December 10.