Bellevue's Two Paths to Cutting Property Tax Bills

Voters in Bellevue face a clear choice on how to shrink their property tax bills. Incumbent Mayor Rusty Hike and challenger Kevin Pflager both promise relief, but their blueprints for paying for it could not be more different.

Hike's plan runs through the city's large attractions, namely the water park and the REACH project. He argues these developments draw visitors from outside the city who spend money at local hotels and restaurants, which in turn grows the tax base and allows rates to fall. "When you're coming from out of state or outside the city, those people are leaving money here in your city, which allows you to start lowering your property taxes," he said.

Pflager wants to see those projects succeed, and pledged to work toward that if elected, but he is not counting on them to solve the tax issue. He favors building on consistent sales tax revenue instead, calling the water park "a big, fancy idea" while cautioning that "it is not going to be the sustainable, guaranteed, foolproof method to get these down."

The two candidates share ground on Olde Towne, the city's downtown district. Hike has made its revitalization a priority. Pflager backs improvements there as well and said he would pursue grants and loans to pay for them.

Other issues surfaced during the campaign. No official debate has been scheduled, a point one 18-year-old first-time voter raised, saying they wanted to know more about the candidates. Pflager posted a request for a debate online, and Hike said he would participate only if an independent party organized it. "I'm certainly not afraid to debate anybody, but I want to make sure it's an unbiased debate and not some kind of hit job," Hike said.

Both men have faced questions about potential conflicts of interest. Residents asked Hike about his real estate business, and he said he recuses himself from votes on projects near his own properties. "I do own some properties around town, but there's a lot of people who own some properties around town," he said. Hike then raised concerns about Pflager's role as a city planner for Papillion, a neighboring city. Pflager responded that his job does not involve recruiting development to Papillion, noting developers usually pick a site before contacting him. He added that any conflicts he could foresee as mayor would involve a land swap or boundary adjustment, and that many such matters were settled years ago.