Happy Monday, Eagle Mountain. Colten here.

Well the public hearing on August 6 was sure a doozy. It started at 6:00 PM and went well past 10:00 PM. I have more to say about that later, but I wanted to give a shoutout to everyone who came and shared their comments publicly with the city. It takes a lot of courage to do so.

Before I drag my thoughts out too long here, I just want to make one point regarding this: you don’t have to wait until something drastic happens, like a proposed 220% property tax increase, to share your thoughts with the city. You can do that at any time. And I highly encourage you to do so. If we as citizens showed up more often like we did on the day of the hearing, then the city council will be better equipped to make decisions that benefit us. And on the flip side, we’ll be better citizens because we know how to better support those who run our city and keep all of the essential services running.

I hope that my newsletters help us all better connect with our city and each other. If not, then what the heck am I doing here?

Anyways, here’s what’s going on this week.

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After hours of public comments, the City Council voted to approve a new property tax rate of 183%. Utah law requires a public hearing, called a Truth-in-Taxation hearing, before a city can collect more property tax revenue than it did the year before. Eagle Mountain held that hearing on August 6 and heard dozens of residents speak out about the increase. The city ultimately passed an increase, lowering the original proposal from 220% to 183%.

For the average $488,000 home, that works out to about $255 more per year in city property tax, instead of the $314.03 in the original proposal. Citywide, the change is expected to bring in roughly $5.5 million in new yearly revenue, down from the $6.74 million the original proposal would have brought in.

That money is still set aside entirely for the Utah County Sheriff's Office contract, which pays for seven new positions: one sergeant and six deputies. Councilmember Craig Whiting said the new property tax money goes entirely toward that contract, which means the sales tax dollars that used to help cover it are now free for other city needs, like staff pay and new hires.

Common themes ran through the hours of public comment. Many speakers who opposed the increase raised concerns about affordability, arguing that families already stretched by rising costs could not absorb a jump this large. Several asked for a detailed, line-by-line breakdown of how the money would actually be spent. Some pointed to tax breaks the city has given large data centers and asked why residents should carry more of the burden while those companies pay less. A number of speakers also argued the original 220% proposal was set high on purpose, so that a smaller final number would look more reasonable by comparison.

Fewer speakers supported the increase as proposed, but their reasoning centered on a few consistent points. Some argued that a stable funding source like property tax is more dependable for paying for police services than sales tax, which rises and falls with the economy. Others noted that Eagle Mountain has not raised its property tax rate since 2010, and said the city has only avoided an increase this long by keeping spending tight, a pace they said can't continue given how fast the city is growing.

What this means for residents: The 183% rate is not final until the City Council formally adopts the city's 2026-2027 budget on August 18 at 7 PM. If you want to see the numbers for yourself, Civic Roll Call's tax estimator breaks down what this increase means for a home like yours, using the numbers the city read into the public record. For more information see the Daily Herald's article.

Eagle Mountain City Council also holds a special meeting on August 10 at 3:30 PM to vote on a type of federal funding called a Community Development Block Grant, or CDBG, which cities use to pay for local projects that benefit lower-income residents. This vote was originally scheduled for the regular August 6 hearing, but was rescheduled to this meeting.

What this means for residents: This vote decides whether that CDBG funding moves forward for local projects. The meeting is open to the public at City Hall, and the full agenda is posted online. Questions can go to [email protected].

I stopped by the ribbon cutting for John Hancock Charter School's new building on the Eagle Mountain campus. The building is specifically for grades K-6, and it is part of a $25 million expansion that brought the campus's total capacity up to 900 seats. Registration for the 2026-2027 school year is still open, but seats are filling up fast.

John Hancock is a tuition-free public charter school serving grades K-8, with campuses in Eagle Mountain and Pleasant Grove. The Eagle Mountain campus also runs a separate program for 7th and 8th grade. Families interested in enrolling can reach the school at 801-796-5646.

Panda Express also held its ribbon cutting on Friday, August 7, in the District at Eagle Mountain Town Center along Pony Express Parkway. I got to witness the very first customer buy their very first Panda meal, so of course I had to share that photo here.

Panda Express is one of four new restaurants confirmed for that part of town, alongside Costa Vida, Papa Murphy's, and Melty, aimed at giving residents more dining options without a drive to Saratoga Springs or Lehi.

Hope you have an amazing week.

See you around,

— Colten

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