PLYMOUTH, Wis. — Plymouth residents gathered for the first information session Tuesday night about the November Referendum, which would raise property taxes to fund the city's police department.
Voters will decide whether to allow the city to raise its property tax levy by $600,000 annually for the police department. The city estimates a home assessed at $300,000 would see an increase of about $137 a year.
Plymouth resident Zach said he is concerned about the financial impact on homeowners.
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"I know it's not a lot of money, but, like I said, in this, in this day, every dollar matters. We're scrimping and saving wherever we can," said Zach.
Plymouth Police Chief Kenneth Ruggles explained why the department is seeking additional funding.
"We have noticed that there's a need right now for staffing and the police department."
The department has had 16 patrol officers since 1997, but the city says incident reports nearly tripled from 2020 to 2025. The referendum would fund three additional officers, two new squad cars, equipment, and wage adjustments.
One resident at the meeting questioned whether raising taxes should be the first option, demanding a much clearer plan in the future on how the department would control the budget.
"You're passing along to the taxpayers is saying, we need more from them. We need to squeeze that. We need to squeeze that again for."
Kirk Heinig, who lives across the street from Zach, said he is willing to pay more for police but wants a clearer explanation from the city.
"If we didn't need the police officers 4 or 5 years ago, what makes us think we have to have them now?" said Heinig.
Plymouth Common Council member Kevin Sande said officers are currently working extra hours to keep up with demand.
"If we don't act now, it's going to affect our retention on the force. It's definitely needed."
The city will hold two more information sessions on October 8 and 29, before voters decide on November 3rd.
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