Keep Greeley Moving tax proves popular among voters, according to recent survey results
By Kelly Ragan
The results are in and the survey says Greeley residents feel pretty good about the Keep Greeley Moving tax. So good the survey conductors said ,“residents overwhelmingly support renewing KGM until 2029,” when the tax, if approved, would be up for another vote.
The Keep Greeley Moving tax is a .65% retail sales tax (all retail, no food) used to fund road improvements and repairs. It is set to expire Dec. 31, 2022.
Strategies 360, a firm based out of Denver, conducted a survey of 502 registered voters across a variety of demographics and socioeconomic status in Greeley between April 21-25.
According to the results, 82% of respondents they were in favor of renewing the tax.
In 2020, Greeley City Council voted against putting the tax renewal on the ballot amid so much uncertainty with COVID-19. Instead, they opted only to put the Food Tax up for a vote.
But 2021 is a new year – and things are (fingers crossed) looking up.
The money from the tax, now in its fifth year, goes toward fixing up concrete and sidewalk infrastructure as well as neighborhood and larger roads.
According to Public Works Deputy Director Joel Hemesath on the Keep Greeley Moving website, by the end of 2020, more than 60% of Greeley’s roads ranked at “excellent” quality.
But, Hemesath said, it’s a project that never ends.
“As soon as a road is finished, repaved, sealed, repaired or treated, it starts degrading,” Hemesath said. “That’s just how roads work. The biggest factors in a road’s degrading condition are moisture, sun, and dramatic freeze-thaw changes in temperature – and it turns out Greeley has all three of those in abundance.”
Raising vs maintaining the tax
The city isn’t likely to suggest increasing the tax from .65%, even though the tax is so popular. Why? That popularity seems to vanish if surveyors ask about an increase.
According to Strategies 360, less than 40% of residents surveyed would support increasing the rate from .65% to .95%.