Budget
The city of Arbon has an investment backlog: significantly more investment is to be made in the future
The 2025 budget envisages a red zero. The financial situation of the city of Arbon is stable. However, the infrastructure has suffered. This is because for a long time too little investment has been made.
The Arbon town hall viewed from above.
Image: Manuel Nagel
A deficit of 200,000 francs is not a huge amount. Not in a city like Arbon, which deals with income and expenses of over 60 million francs. “Our budget is in the red.” This is how Mayor René Walther sums up the result. Together with Finance Director Pascal Büchler, he presented the forecast figures for 2025 to the media on Tuesday.
Unsurprisingly, the cost drivers are rising health and social welfare costs. Health costs at the local level alone are growing by around 10 percent annually.
City wants to invest 11 million
Net investments are a recurring topic in Arbon. Parliamentarians criticized the city council as early as 2022 for not investing enough in recent years. Walther said on Tuesday: “We have an investment backlog.” This is due to the fact that since 2017, only between 2 and 4 million francs have been invested each year. He emphasizes: “A city like Arbon would have to invest an average of 6.5 million francs annually to maintain value.” The current investment volume of all possible projects in the action plan amounts to around 110 million francs.
René Walther, Mayor of Arbon.
Photo: Annina Flaig
The positive aspect is that the external debt, currently amounting to 40 million francs, is relatively low due to the low level of investment and the financial situation of the city of Arbon remains stable.
In the 2025 budget, the investment calculation provides for net investments of around 11 million francs. The question is whether the city council will be able to implement all of these investments. “These are investments for which the loans have already been approved or are at an appropriate stage in the planning process,” confirms Walther.
The city can finance around a third of the investment volume itself. The city will continue to take on debt for the rest.
Tax rate should remain the same
According to Pascal Büchler, the developments and planned investments pose financial challenges for the city. The city council is therefore recommending that the population keep the tax rate at 72 percent. As is well known, this is the highest in the canton.
Arbon’s CFO Pascal Büchler.
Model: Ralph Ribi
The city of Arbon needs the taxes to be able to finance the planned investments over the long term. The investments, in turn, are essential. Walther says: “For many years, too little has been invested in large parts of the infrastructure, such as the sports field or the Seepark hall. We urgently need to make up for this. Otherwise we will have to tear them down at some point.”
Ballot vote on the budget
The city parliament will discuss the city of Arbon’s 2025 budget on September 17, 2024. The electorate will vote on it at the ballot box on November 24, 2024.
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