Fees set to go into effect in July.
Killeen City Council voted December 11 to adopt a street maintenance fee to fund annual maintenance of Killeen’s 564 miles of public roads. The fee will be applied to monthly utility bills beginning in July.
A street maintenance fee is a source of revenue collected specifically for the maintenance of a city’s street system based on a usage calculation for residential and commercial properties. Revenue from the fee is placed in a specific fund to be used solely for its intended purpose.
Killeen’s street maintenance fee has been set at a rate of $1.70 per single-family equivalent per month. A single-family home will be billed $1.70 per month while the fee is adjusted for other types of property like multi-family and commercial.
To help members of the public anticipate the amount of their street maintenance fee, the City has developed an interactive map that shows each property and its exact charge. Properties can be searched by typing in an address or selecting the parcel on a map. When selected, a window will provide information specific to the property including the monthly fee.
As adopted, the fee will generate $1.6 million each year to be added to the current general fund allocation of about $300,000 for maintenance. The additional funding will increase the amount of annual preventative maintenance and decrease the maintenance cycle from 15 years to seven.
Killeen’s street system is made up of 564 linear miles of road, or 2,191 lane miles. It contains 98 traffic signals, 65 school flashers, hundreds of miles of sidewalk, thousands of signs and many other components. Each of these elements requires regular and preventative maintenance.
A condition assessment will be completed before implementation of the fee to prioritize streets and surface treatments. This information will be used to develop annual work plans.
The City has established a street maintenance fee webpage that links to the interactive map and contains additional information related to the fee. This public resource is available at KilleenTexas.gov/SMF.