CAROLINA BEACH — The Carolina Beach town manager presented Tuesday a projected budget for next fiscal year. The short of it: a property tax increase and escalated utility costs could be in the cards.
The town’s general fund is expected to be at $27.4 million, up $3.4 million since last year, with wages and benefits making up 50% of it, though “no new headcount,” according to Mayor Lynn Barbee.
READ MORE: Carolina Beach Boardwalk properties decreased by $3M in town settlement
The Enterprise Fund is $12.6 million, up $228,000 from last year. It will come with a 9% increase in utility costs — a non-optional increase mandated by bond covenants.
Town manager Bruce Oakley said costs have risen nationally due to inflation, also affecting fuel prices and diesel, electric bills and other general needs that impact government operations. He added the town froze a couple of open positions, re-evaluated projects in the works and scrapped some that weren’t of high importance, such as a parking lot redesign at town hall, to achieve its needs for next fiscal year.
Earlier this year, Carolina Beach revealed it was at the center of a scam that stole almost a half-million dollars from the town. Council asked for the loss be settled through the current budget as to not affect next fiscal year, which Oakley achieved by cost-cutting, delayed hiring, project shifting and more.
“We’re on track to make sure our budget balances without dipping into our fund balance to make up for the $435,000 cybersecurity loss,” he said.
Mayor Lynn Barbee wrote in an emailed message to residents Tuesday morning his appreciation for “town staff who absorbed the loss with departmental cuts and working extra shifts to cover for positions not filled.”
Oakley said the focus in Carolina Beach for the 2026-2026 budget is retention and recruitment of employees, as discussed with council at its numerous budget retreats, which began in January. The town has instituted a tiered cost-of-living wage, which means different percentages apply to varied levels of employment. In essence, the town’s lowest wage will match the county’s living wage rate at $23 an hour.
“So with the lowest wage increased to that, it’s 12%,” Oakley said of the steepest jump.
He added the town also “walked into a real hole” at the start of the budget season with doubling healthcare costs. However, town staff shopped around for competitive programs and landed on an insurance plan that will raise costs by 30% rather than 50%.
“We have held steady for five years,” he said, noting other government entities nationally have seen increases already, a bulk of it due to high priced medications. “But I think the program we landed on is better.”
“I think what you’re trying to do is create a culture where people want to stay here,” Mayor Lynn Barbee interjected, to which Oakley agreed.
Council member Deb LaCompte stated the investment the town makes in hiring and training pays off in the long run with long-term employees committed to staying in Carolina Beach.
“We don’t want to be a stepping stone,” she said. “We don’t want people here for only a year or two and going wherever because of higher pay or better benefits.”
Their colleague, Vincent Losito, agreed, adding it costs more to have to retrain people and catch them up to speed than merely retain solid workers.
“People don’t realize that,” he said. “Every town has its own nuances and you can’t just bring that knowledge into it.”
Oakley told council, while morale is high within town ranks it’s inevitable that “money does talk.” Thus, why he focused more on employee pay and benefits for Carolina Beach to maintain competition against other entities.
Per the enterprise fund, Oakley said it’s a little short, particularly related to increased diesel costs. Also town issued bonds will lead to a 9% increase in fees.
In preparing for bond funded projects, Carolina Beach had to pay for engineering services up front; however, money should be able to be put back into the fund to recover the costs, Oakley explained.
The town manager is presenting his recommended budget at the council’s meeting on May 12. However, beforehand Carolina Beach is holding a budget open house on Monday, May 5, and two public hearings in both May and June before council votes on the final document.
“I’m torn Bruce, I think 3.5 cents is a big pill to swallow, but I agree with your logic and values,” the mayor said. “I’m going to take the 3.5 and put it in the back of mind and you guys will keep working on it.”
In his morning email to residents, the mayor further pinpointed it would cost him $275 more based on his home’s assessed value of $787,100. The mayor also mentioned Carolina Beach staff completed $22 million in projects that do not rely on property taxes.
“This is possible because of the staff investments made over the last several years, then focused to find and obtain federal and state grant money,” the mayor wrote. “I would say those staff investments have paid off.”
Oakley agreed to continue finessing numbers “up until the last minute” and will have a more detailed document for council this week and for the public’s perusal at Monday’s open house.
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