Hopewell council votes to increase real estate tax rate by 4 cents. Citizens don't like it

HOPEWELL – Despite pleas from some citizens that it would force them to choose between hunger and homelessness, City Council voted Tuesday night to raise the city’s real estate tax by four cents and install a new per-pack tax of 80 cents per pack on cigarettes sold in the city.

The 4-3 vote by no means was a clear mandate of support for the hikes – those who opposed it made that point very clear prior to the vote. But it did bring out a lot of groans from those who moments before asked for no tax increases of any kind, especially the real estate tax.

“Hopewell ain’t that special,” resident Mark Burroughs told councilors during a public hearing. He said that if the taxes were raised, “watch how many people hop their hind parts across the bridge” into neighboring jurisdictions to do business cheaper than they could in Hopewell.

Opponents of the tax hike, including council members, pointed out that Hopewell’s recent round of reassessments already drove property values higher. Hiking the rate from $1.13 per each $100 of assessed value to $1.17 will only make residents – particularly seniors and others on fixed incomes – have to dig deeper into their pockets and ultimately make tough decisions.

“I gotta choose between taxes and groceries,” resident Mary Gibbs said.

Added Erlene Allen, “I’m struggling to make ends meet right now. I don’t get any help.”

In addition to raising the real estate rate, council’s action Tuesday night created a first-ever tobacco sales tax and raised the food and lodging tax from 8% to 10%. The personal property and machinery and tools tax rates stay unchanged at $3.50 and $3.10, respectively, per $100 of assessed value.

“I don’t even smoke,” Ward 4 resident Wally Radcliffe said, “but you know that those who do, they’re just going to go someplace else to buy their cigarettes rather than here in Hopewell.”

The proposed tax increases also drew opposition from the Hopewell-Prince George Chamber of Commerce and the Hopewell Manufacturing Association. Representatives for both pointed to the business impacts such increases would have on the city.

“The proposal to increase tax rates negatively affects our members who are already dealing with inflation and increased costs of maintaining their businesses,” chamber board president Dana Newcomer said. “A tax increase is detrimental if it hasn’t been properly planned for.”

None of Tuesday night's speakers spoke in favor of the increases.

Supporters of the tax increase point to financing long-delayed capital improvement projects around Hopewell as the reason. Most of those projects involve various road assessments and repair needs, but there are also some issues at the Hopewell Community Center such as heating, ventilation and air-conditioning repairs, and equipment replacement.

Those arguments, however, were dismissed by the three councilors who opposed any tax increases. One of them, Vice Mayor Jasmine Gore, laid the blame for Hopewell’s current state on previous city administrations and council incarnations.

“Quite frankly, it’s 10 years of poor governing that have led us here,” Gore said.

Ward 7 Councilor Dominic Holloway noted how interim finance director Russ Branson pointed out in previous discussions about the tax rates that there were options to increases in generating needed revenue.

“We should not increase the suffering on our citizens,” Holloway said. “Some people are right on the edge when it comes to finances.”

Gore and Holloway were joined by Ward 6 Councilor Brenda Pelham in opposition. Favoring the increases were Mayor Johnny Partin Jr. and councilors Rita Joyner of Ward 1, Michael Harris of Ward 2 and Janice Denton of Ward 5.

The vote led to some lively discussion outside the Municipal Building among citizens who attended the meeting.

The mayor’s father, John Partin Sr., argued with Burroughs and other citizens that council was only acting on recommendations from City Manager Dr. Concetta Manker and her staff that the rates be increased.

“Put that in the newspaper that the city manager is president of this city,” Partin Sr. said to a nearby journalist.

He was contradicted by Burroughs and resident Darlene Thompson who noted Manker is one of three city employees who report directly to council. The disagreement turned a bit heated when Burroughs told Partin Sr. that “you’re too simple to understand” the ramifications of the tax increases on Hopewell, but tensions never escalated beyond words.

Bill Atkinson (he/him/his) is an award-winning journalist who covers breaking news, government and politics. Reach him at batkinson@progress-index.com or on X (formerly known as Twitter) at @BAtkinson_PI.

This article originally appeared on The Progress-Index: Hopewell council approves increases in real estate, tobacco, lodging taxes