Duluth Councilors Plan to Shift Funding for Streetlight Fee

DULUTH - The Duluth City Council voted to slowly phase out the streetlight fee Monday.

Councilors Joel Sipress and Zach Filipovich developed a plan to shift the funding from a flat monthly fee to including it in the 2015 tax levy.

It’s a five year plan to gradually phase out the fee.

It includes lowering it by 10 percent next year, 20 percent the following two years, and 10 percent in 2017.

"By year five, all taxpayers will be paying less tax or fee in total,” explained Filipovich. “In the first year, with that 10 percent reduction, most homeowners will see immediate tax benefit."

Councilors Jay Fosle and Linda Krug were against the new streetlight plan.