You say you’d like to see part of DeKalb County turned into the city of Brookhaven? Well, hold on to your wallet.
Formation of what would be the county's biggest town could be costlier than first though, according to figures released Tuesday by the DeKalb County Tax Assessor.
The new figures update a study first conducted by the Carl Vinson Institute of Government in 2010. They show the decline in property tax values paints a very different picture for the proposed city of Brookhaven than was painted when the initial study was issued two years ago.
Since the 2010 study, the Tax Assessor's study shows property tax revenues have dropped more than 6.8 percent.
"The study originally had a slight budget surplus of about $130,000," said DeKalb County Communications Director Burke Brennan. "But with the tax decline, it looks like it would be closer to a $360,000 deficit."
To some degree, these numbers were pulled out of thin air, given that they're based on a budget that is purely hypothetical. But they do point to a declining trend in property taxes that could make finding support for the new city tougher than before.