White Bear Lake is known for its small town  charm, which is a big reason people love living in the area, including me. I'm City Manager Lindy  Crawford. The residents of White Bear Lake have come to rely upon the city's exceptional services  including beautiful amenities well-maintained streets and parks and 24/7 police and fire  services. These are just a few of the many reasons residents have made White Bear Lake their  home for generations, but a question I frequently hear from residents is, "Well how does the city  spend my property taxes?" First I'd like to say, City staff spends the entire year working to make  sure the people of White Bear Lake have a balanced budget. The preliminary budget is presented  to the City Council several times each year to review planned operating expenditures and capital  projects. Before adopting the final budget for the upcoming year, a truth-in-taxation hearing is held  in December to give residents an opportunity to ask questions and provide feedback. It's a great  opportunity to learn how the budget works. The city strives to maintain a budget that maintains  a 10-year financial management plan and capital improvement plan to ensure funding is available  for future projects and capital replacements, as well as maintain a fund balance of not less  than 35% of the subsequent year's budgeted operating expenditures. We also maintain a budget  that supports a public safety model which is oriented to being proactive, preventative,  and prepared while meeting the staffing, support and facility needs. Taxes paid by  residents support operations of the City of White Bear Lake, the school district, the  county and other governmental organizations such as the Metropolitan Council or a watershed  district. In general for every $1 of taxes paid the city receives approximately twenty cents. For a  residential home valued at $312,000 $845 of your annual property taxes goes to the City.  For this price the property owner receives exceptional quality of life in White Bear Lake and  receives 24/7 police response, 24/7 fire response, street maintenance street sweeping, lighting  and snow plowing, parks access and recreation activities, election activities, access to city  publications and access to elected officials and city staff. For more information or if you have  questions visit our website or reach out to me. Wow now I get it we only pay $845 a year and we  get all of those services? Now that's a good deal!