MARYSVILLE—Continuing its commitment to fiscal prudence in a time of economic uncertainty, the Marysville City Council unanimously adopted the city’s next two-year budget at its November 25 meeting.
The balanced 2025-2026 biennial budget of $450,135,923 proposed by Marysville Mayor Jon Nehring maintains essential city services while essentially holding the line on staffing. It adds two new positions in 2025, a civil attorney and a wastewater treatment plant operator.
“As residents and taxpayers ourselves, we put a priority on keeping costs contained while providing the city services that residents depend on,” said Mayor Jon Nehring. Nearly half (46%) of the General Fund pays for Police Department services.
The 2025-2026 General Fund budget is $140.9 million. The non-General Fund budget is $250.4 million for a total budget of $391.3 million. The capital portion of the total budget is $54.8 million (14%).
Property tax revenue will grow by approximately 3.69% over the prior year due to new construction that has occurred within the city. Average assessed value for the 2025 property tax year is estimated to grow by 4.49% per the Snohomish County Assessor’s office press release.
The City of Marysville levy rate per $1,000 of assessed value will decrease from $0.8337 to an estimated rate of $0.7794 as a result of increase in assessed valuations and for new construction
For the 13th year in a row, the City Council chose not to take the 1% property tax increase allowed by law.
The budget includes a 5% rate increase for water, sewer and stormwater services to cover the inflationary cost of those services, particularly the increased price for the portion of water Marysville buys from the City of Everett. Starting in January 2025, that equates to an increase of $9.61 per bimonthly billing for a typical customer, or $4.81 per month. Garbage, recycling and yard waste rates are not going up.
Council President Michael Stevens said, “I am grateful for a responsible and conservative budget that does not increase property taxes for our citizens.”
Investments in Infrastructure
Transportation
- $496,000 for City-wide intersection improvements
- $3.6 million for Ingraham Blvd/88th Street NE, design and construction
- $1.6 million for Safe Routes to School, 49th Dr NE
- $945,300 for 67th Avenue NE, design and construction
- $705,000 for City-wide pedestrian safety improvements
- $2.5 million for 156th St NE design, right of way and construction
- $6 million in Street pavement repairs and overlays funded through the voter-approved Transportation Benefit District
Water and Sewer Services
- $1.25 million for Cascade & Shoultes Elementary Stormwater Improvements, design and construction
- $900,000 for Water main replacement, 4th/88th Interchange, design and construction
- $1.65 million for 88th Street NE Water Main replacement, design and construction
- $1.6 million for 88th Street NE Sewer Main replacement, design and construction
- $1.62 million in site cleanup of the former Geddes Marina property
- $600,000 for Jennings Nature Park Stormwater Facility design and retrofit
- $1.2 million for Interfor/Riverwalk Site Fill and Analysis
City Parks
- $750,000 for Bayview Trail, 64th St NE/SR 528 to 55th Pl NE, design and right of way
- $250,000 for Twin Lakes Park improvements, design and construction
- $1.9 million for Ebey Waterfront Trail, design, right of way, construction
- $1 million for Mother Nature’s Window, design and construction
Personnel and Public Safety
Personnel
The city is planning for community needs and improvements by investing in personnel and public safety. Recruitment efforts have been ongoing to attract top talent and qualified candidates. The budget provides for two additional new hires with one in the Waterworks Utility Fund and the other in the legal department to fill the role of a Civil Attorney.
Public Safety
The city has made significant efforts to recruit top talent for law enforcement positions. The Police department has been working to establish professional standards and received a clean onsite evaluation from the Washington Association of Sheriff and Police Chiefs (WASPC). The city is looking forward to the official designation of the Marysville Police department as a state-accredited agency
Find details of the 2025-2026 city budget online at https://www.marysvillewa.gov/124/City-Budget.
SOURCE: City of Marysville
Author: Lynnwood Times Staff
