How Parker is run
Who runs Parker, what it costs, and where your money goes
The city manager, council pay, the budget, your property tax bill and who provides each service, from Parker's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Parker
A town manager appointed by the council runs the town day to day. The seven-member council, including the elected mayor, sets policy and adopts the budget. The council also appoints the town attorney and the municipal judge.
What they are paid
Parker city staff
488 full-time-equivalent positions, including Police 156, Recreation 104, Public works and engineering 48, Cultural 32, Parks and forestry 30. FY2026 budget. Town of Parker · Jan 31, 2026
The budget lists staffing (FTE) by department; we found no published pay list by position. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Parker in the red?
Cities must pass a balanced budget, so "profit" and "deficit" mean something different here. The useful questions: does the city's everyday money (the general fund) cover its everyday costs, how much does it keep in savings compared with its own target, and how big are its pension and debt bills.
Savings
Unassigned general fund balance: $16.4M (2025-12-31). Town of Parker · Jun 1, 2026
Why we skip the "budgeted deficit": many cities plan to dip into savings, then spend less than planned. The audited result tells you what really happened.
Where the money comes from and goes
The general fund only: the city's everyday money for FY2026.
Comes from
- Sales and use tax$61.1M · 72%
- Intergovernmental$4.9M · 6%
- Licenses and permits$4.6M · 5%
- Charges for services$4.4M · 5%
- Property tax$3.8M · 5%
- Other taxes$3.5M · 4%
- Other (miscellaneous, fines)$2M · 2%
Goes to (FY2026)
- Public safety$32.1M · 39%
- Public works$23.2M · 28%
- General government$12.4M · 15%
- Parks and recreation$6.5M · 8%
- Transfers to other funds$2.7M · 3%
- Community development$2.6M · 3%
- Debt service$2.3M · 3%
- Other (economic incentives, urban renewal support)$1.1M · 1%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
These are the levies the town lists as applying to all Parker property owners. Many neighborhoods also pay a metropolitan district levy, which is not included here. The town's share is about 3% of this total.
3¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Parker
- Douglas County School District (incl. debt service)45.528 · 53%
- Douglas County19.774 · 23%
- South Metro Fire Rescue12.25 · 14%
- Douglas County Libraries3.519 · 4%
- Town of Parker2.602 · 3%
- Urban Drainage District1 · 1%
- Cherry Creek Basin Water0.45 · <1%
- Total (mills)85.123
2025 tax year rates (paid in 2026) common to all property in the Town of Parker (Douglas County). Town of Parker · Jan 31, 2026
See what a Parker house pays, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in Parker is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityParker Police DepartmentTown of Parker · Jan 31, 2026
- Streets and snow plowingThe cityTown Public Works DepartmentTown of Parker · Jan 31, 2026
- StormwaterThe cityTown Public Works DepartmentTown of Parker · Jan 31, 2026
- Parks and trailsThe cityTown Parks, Recreation and Open Space DepartmentTown of Parker · Jan 31, 2026
Compared with similar cities
The cities in this state closest in population that we cover. Read it for scale, not as a ranking: cities provide different services.
| Per city | ErieCO | ParkerCO | Castle RockCO | BoulderCO |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 40,904 | 65,985 | 83,815 | 105,689 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $230,000 | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | $358,426 |
| Council member pay | $3,600 | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed |
| General fund per resident | $1,847 | $1,257 | $1,219 | $1,840 |
| Debt per resident | $1,354 | $486 | $2,063 | $2,987 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $0 | $0 | $5 | $834 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 7.8 | 7.4 | 8.0 | 14.6 |
Figures as shown in each city's section, divided by its population. Years differ by state, and pension figures are measured differently in each state (each city page says how). Erie pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Parker publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- Yes: Adopted budget posted onlineThe 2026 Annual Budget, passed Nov. 17, 2025, is posted as a full budget book. Town of Parker · Jan 31, 2026
- No: City manager's contract findable onlineWe found no employment agreement or salary figure for the town manager on the town website or its agenda portal. Town of Parker
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member onlineCouncil minutes list roll-call votes by member, e.g. on Sept. 21, 2026. Town of Parker · Sep 21, 2026
- No: Employee pay publishedWe found no town-published pay list by employee or position; the budget lists staffing (FTE) by department only. Town of Parker · Jan 31, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- The town levies 2.602 mills of property tax, a small share of the common Parker property tax rate. Should that balance change if sales tax growth slows?
The fiscal year runs Jan. 1 to Dec. 31. The town manager must propose a budget by Oct. 15; the council holds two public hearings, one by Nov. 15, and adopts the budget by Dec. 15. For 2026, the hearings were Nov. 3 and Nov. 17, 2025. See who is running for council
Help decide what comes next
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Every number here was checked by hand against the linked document. Cities publish on different schedules, so years differ between sections; each figure says which year it describes. Spotted something wrong or out of date?
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