Kearney Has Second Lowest Property Taxes in Nebraska

Today I am happy to be ranked second-to-last, and you should be too. Kearney has dropped to the bottom of the list with the second lowest property taxes among first class cities in the state. Cities are classified as first class if they have more than 5,000 population – outside of Lincoln and Omaha. Kearney residents get a great value for their money. The City is an efficient operation that has not cut services or jobs even during the ongoing recession. Citizen support for the Special ½ cent Sales Tax, reasonable periodic rate increases for services ranging from water to golf rounds, and employee acceptance of a freeze in cost of living wage increases during the recession have been instrumental in keeping property taxes low.

The City of Kearney has a property tax levy of .148870, or about 15¢ per $100 of valuation for the fourth consecutive year. On a house valued at $150,000 the City receives $225 in property taxes. This shows the value of local government to residents, the services received – streets, water, sewer, police, fire, library, and airport – are provided with a very low property tax burden.

I-80 Cherry Avenue Bypass Approved by Federal Highway Commission

On January 12, the City announced that the Cherry Avenue Bypass has been approved by the Federal Highway Commission.  This is great news for the City.  Since 1997, City officials, community organizations, and citizens have been working diligently to secure a second I-80 interchange.  After 13 years, we are on the brink of having that goal become a reality.  The State of Nebraska will bid the project for construction this spring, and work is set to begin this summer. We expect Cherry Avenue to be open for traffic from I-80 to 11^th Street in 2013.  The cost for this first phase of the project is estimated at $12 million.  The City of Kearney has committed $2 million to the total project from revenues from Keno proceeds; the remainder of the funding will come from state and federal sources.  Thank you to Senator Ben Nelson and former Representative Tom Osborne for securing a federal earmark for this project and to the citizens of Kearney who worked so tirelessly to promote the interests of the community. 

Kearney Connection Annual Newsletter

Read the City's annual newsletter the "Kearney Connection" by clicking on the title above. Included in the newsletter is an update on the TECH oNE Crossing data park, Capital Improvement Projects update, economic development update, building statistics, Park & Recreation, and Kearney Regional Airport to name a few. We believe you will find the Kearney Connection newsletter to be very informative.