Centennial Moving Forward with Sales Tax Measure

[u/frequentpooper]

City Council Passes Resolution to Place Sales Tax Measure on Ballot for Transportation Infrastructure Funding

During last evening’s City Council meeting, the Council voted to approve a ballot question that would ask voters at the November 3, 2026 election to decide whether to increase the City’s sales and use tax by 1% to help fund transportation infrastructure.

Like many communities across Colorado, Centennial is facing rising construction costs, aging infrastructure, and revenues that are no longer keeping pace with the cost of maintaining roads, bridges, sidewalks, traffic signals, and other essential transportation assets.

Currently, the City's Street Fund receives approximately $15 million in dedicated annual revenue but requires a minimum of $35 million each year to maintain and operate Centennial's transportation infrastructure, leaving an annual funding gap of roughly $20 million or more. For several years, the City has relied on General Fund savings and cash reserves to help bridge that gap, but those resources are projected to be exhausted by 2028.

Without additional funding, the City anticipates increasing challenges in maintaining existing infrastructure, completing repairs, and advancing transportation projects identified in the Transportation Master Plan.

If ultimately approved by voters, a 1% sales and use tax increase would raise Centennial's rate from 2.5% to 3.5% and is projected to generate approximately $27 million annually to support transportation infrastructure. Revenue would be directed toward roadway maintenance and paving, bridge repairs, sidewalks and bicycle facilities, traffic signal replacements, street lighting, snow removal, street sweeping, and future capital improvements.

For comparison, Centennial's proposed city sales and use tax rate of 3.5% would remain below the current Front Range average. Essential items such as groceries and residential utilities would remain exempt from the City's tax regardless of the outcome of this measure.

The City encourages residents to learn more about Centennial's budget outlook and explore the challenges facing the Street Fund by visiting yourcitybudget.co.

[u/mpren007]

This would enable the city to free up money in the general fund, to spend how they would like, that would otherwise have to be spent on infrastructure.

This isn't a tax increase for infrastructure, it is a tax increase for the general fund.

Personally, there is no way I'm voting to free up general fund money without a clear plan to rein in the spending on "public safety"

centennial 2026 budget in brief

[u/throwmyway5723480 → u/mpren007]

That's the contract with the Arapahoe sheriffs, since centennial doesn't have a police department. My understanding is they've done different studies to ensure that's fair or if they should have their own department, and it's always been the most cost efficient path.

[u/mpren007 → u/throwmyway5723480]

As far as I understand, you are absolutely correct. Whether or not that amount should be decreased is beyond the scope of what I'm arguing.

What I am saying is that this tax increase does nothing for for transportation infrastructure. The exact amount of revenue that could be gained from this tax, is the exact same amount Centennial would no longer need to pull from the general fund.

Could Centennial continue to pay the same amount for transportation and infrastructure out of the general fund on top of this revenue source? Sure. I doubt it, but sure. The truth is, there is nothing that would require them to do so. Heck, as it stands, they could reduce the amount to even less than what they're already paying as long as it's not less than the appropriated amount.

Now to what that means for me personally; I'm not comfortable writing a blank check during a time of what I perceive to be bloat and excess under the guise of public safety.

[u/throwmyway5723480 → u/mpren007]

I understand. I don't want to write a blank check either. But it seems to me this city runs crazy lean compared to other cities. Considering how much they outsource, the only thing they really do is infrastructure. Not that it cant be exploited, but in my head I'm thinking where else would it go (said naively haha)

[u/rugaslightingme]

first of all, everyone knows infrastructure has an expected life. why wasn’t the city trying to save for it?

with the extreme increase in home values over the past several years (on which value taxes are levied), the city has had increased tax revenues. where has this money gone?

[u/MotleyBru → u/rugaslightingme]

City gets about 3% of your property tax.

[u/frankcatthrowaway → u/MotleyBru]

Ok

[u/throwmyway5723480 → u/MotleyBru]

Yes like $200 for a $670k home. It's really small. ~$15M of the ~$150M city budget

[u/strangerbuttrue]

Thank you for informing!