Chatham County growth may bring jump in revenue, ease tax burden on families

So who's paying for all that growth as Chatham County cashes in on this construction?

The county manager is proposing a budget with no increase to the property tax rate. For homeowners, it would stay at 66.5 cents on every $100 of a home's assessed value.

The county's proposed budget focuses on preparing for the growth. The county expects a 19 percent increase in sales tax revenue.

Fees collected from permits and inspections are expected to soar 78 percent. That's mainly from new commercial and industrial projects coming to the county in the next year.

The budget adds 36 new positions at the county to help manage the services needed for all the growth.

"I’ve been watching the county budget for probably 20 years, and this is exactly what we needed," said Heather Johnson, who owns Pittsboro Print Plus.

Johnson said the development building up around the county is helping ease the tax burden on families.

"We can’t expect residential development to pay for all the services that are needed in our county," Johnson said. "They’re bringing in a lot of money, but they’re bringing in people, too."

County commissioners will begin their work on the proposed budget and make any changes they'd like to see. They'll meet Tuesday morning for the first of three scheduled work sessions for the week.

Chatham County Schools are also a priority in the proposed budget. It fully funds the school system's request for an additional $5 million.