Salem taxpayers will have to wait until next Thursday to learn what their property tax bill will be for next year.

Tentatively, the single-family rate is expected to go up more than $100 on a house with a value of about $300,000. The tax rate on condos is also expected to rise. And the multi-family rate may decline slightly, Ward 1 Councilor Robert McCarthy said.

The City Council had planned to set the tax rate Thursday night. But the state Department of Revenue would not certify that tax rate until the city and Dominion Resources reach an agreement regarding how much Dominion will pay the city in taxes next year, said McCarthy, who chairs the administration and finance subcommittee.

Dominion, which is downsizing the Salem power plant, believes it should pay less than the $4.5 million it has been paying the city annually. It was not disclosed how much less Dominion will agree to pay the city.

Thanks to a measure pushed through by state Rep. John Keenan and state Sen. Fred Berry, the state has agreed to make up Salem's tax loss, which will be caused by Dominion's departure, for the next five years. Those funds, which will increase each year, will be paid out of a regional fund created by energy companies and others that contribute to a greenhouse gas fund.

The city's Finance Director Richard Viscay told the council the negotiations with Dominion are close to being completed. But it would take a few more days to get Dominion's signature on the agreement, he said.

The council also postponed acting on Mayor Kimberley Driscoll's request that it move about $1 million from the free cash fund to help keep the rate hike as low as possible. The balance of available funds from this year's budget – known as free cash – would be allocated to stabilization or rainy day funds, McCarthy said.

Measures Postponed Until Next Year

Several measures were postponed until after a new council is inaugurated in early January. Among those is a proposed ordinance to ban Level 3 sex offenders from living within 1,000 feet of a school or public park.

Ward 5 Councilor John Ronan said he proposed the measure because the city of Lynn is considering a similar measure.

It was referred to a subcommittee for further consideration.

Ronan also proposed to help 78 multi-family properties that are in foreclosure and deteriorating. The measure would offer incentives for developers to convert the multi-family buildings back to their original use, either as single-family homes or duplexes.

The council also postponed a measure that would rewrite the taxi cab ordinance. Councilor-at-Large Joan Lovely said the cab companies could not agree on whether to charge fares based on zones or on meters.

Much of the meeting was devoted to saying farewell to three councilors, who were not re-elected and will be leaving the council at the end of the year. Thursday night was the last regularly scheduled meeting of the council. The meeting next Thursday is a special meeting.

Ward 6 Councilor Paul Prevey said that the three departing council members – Councilor-at-Large Steven Pinto, Ward 3 Councilor Jean Pelletier and Ronan – left their mark on the city.

“Salem is a better place because you served here,” he said.

Other councilors echoed those sentiments. Several called the departing members “family.” And McCarthy said that despite differences of opinions, “everyone crosses that threshold as friends.”

Pinto said the last four years serving on the council “have been the best years of my life.” Clearly emotional at leaving the council, Pinto said, “I can honestly say I gave it everything I had.”

Ronan said he was pleased with what did not happen in his district during his term in office. He cited the methadone clinic that was not approved because of the support from other councilors.

Pelletier promised to stay involved in several issues, including flooding near the Salem State University campus. “I will be the proverbial pebble in the shoe,” he said.

The council gave the three departing councilors a clock as a present. The council also gave Council President Jerry Ryan a plaque and gavel for serving as the presiding officer of the council for the year.

A new president and new subcommittee chairs are chosen after a new council is chosen.

Correction: The following was originally published on this article: "The commercial tax rate is expected to hold steady." This phrase should be corrected to read: "The commercial property values held steady over last year, so with the rate increase that means commercial tax payers will be paying a little more."