Elon Town Council members debated whether it would be in the community and council’s best interest to increase property tax rates in order to fund the proposed budget for the 2026 fiscal year during the town council meeting April 28.


Proposed Property Tax Increase

Elon Town Manager Rich Roedner proposed a property tax increase from $0.35 to $0.365, or a one and a half cent increase.

Unlike many other municipalities, sales tax is the number one revenue source for the town of Elon, according to Mayor Emily Sharpe.

“I don’t want to raise taxes unless it’s necessary,” Sharpe said. “So let’s look at it and see where we can save some money.”

According to Roedner, the proposed budget is less conservative than past budgets due to uncertainty about the economy in the coming year and expectations of a recession.

“I have a lot of angst about this coming year in terms of what our sales tax revenue is going to look like, what our interest revenue is going to look like,” Roedner said.

Roedner also said costs are increasing across the board.

“I don’t know anything we’re doing in the coming year that’s going to cost us less than it did last year,” Roedner said.

The town of Elon has not seen much growth in population or value over the past few years, unlike neighboring cities like Mebane, which sees 500 to 600 new homes every year, according to Roedner.

This lack of growth has limited the growth of the town council’s budget, leading Roedner to budget more conservatively. However, this limits the services the town is able to provide for the community.

“If you want to cut next year’s budget then we’ll cut next year’s budget, but there’s a cost to that of things that don’t happen,” Roedner said.

Roedner also presented council members a spreadsheet containing his proposed budget, as well as amounts that would need to be cut from different sections in order to prevent an increase in property taxes.

The current proposed general fund spending is $11,893,860. According to Roedner, in order to prevent a tax increase, $160,572 would need to be cut from the current proposed budget.


Restrictions on local planning and zoning regulations

According to Sharpe, several bills have been introduced in the 2025 session of the North Carolina General Assembly that will limit the authority of local planning and zoning committees. 

Sharpe had a conversation with North Carolina Rep. Dennis Riddell about her concerns; however, bills are moving along quickly in the assembly.

Sharpe said many residents are against high density neighborhoods in the town of Elon; however, the passing of these bills will limit the town’s ability to prevent these neighborhoods from being built.

“What makes us Elon if we are just the same as everyone else going forward?” Sharpe said. “I don’t think that’s what our residents want to see.”

The resolution is a statement expressing the town council’s disapproval of the bill. It was passed unanimously by the council and will be sent to the Alamance County legislative delegation, the Senate Pro Tem and the House Majority Leader in an effort to prevent these bills from being passed.


Fire Tax Increase

The council unanimously approved the resolution to set a public hearing on the increase of the fire tax from $0.0865 to $0.10 for the 2026 fiscal year in order to help offset the cost of hiring new staff and purchasing new equipment and vehicles for the town of Elon Fire Department.


Closed Session

The council also went into a closed session to discuss the acquisition of property located on 112 Orange Drive, with the purpose of relocating the town hall, Elon police department, and accommodating space needs for public meetings and departmental training, according to Mayor Pro Tem Monti Allison.

The town council will hold a public hearing May 13 to discuss the fire tax increase and the proposed budget for the 2026 fiscal year.