PORT TOWNSEND — Voters have turned thumbs-down on a property tax increase to help fund city services.
The defeat of Proposition 1 means the City Council will have to consider service cuts and severe program reductions to balance the city’s budget for 2005.
In the first round of vote counting Tuesday night, 66.3 percent voted against Proposition 1, which would have increased the city property tax from $1.94 to $2.94 per $1,000 of assessed valuation.
The vote as of 10 p.m. was 2,058 no, 1,046 yes. More ballots are to be counted Friday, but no one expects the vote trend to be reversed.
City Council members put Proposition 1 on the ballot after officials estimated a city budget deficit of about $770,000 for 2005.
“I realize that this was a long shot, because the city did not give the voters enough time to consider all the issues,” said Kees Kolff, City Council member and former mayor.
“I would have preferred that it passed, but I am not surprised that it did not.
“Now we have the hard work to figure out how to deal with the shortfall. We hope to hear from the voters what the priorities are.”
