How Groveland is run
Who runs Groveland, 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 Groveland's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Groveland
A city manager hired by the council runs the city day to day. The council sets policy, adopts the budget and sets the tax rate.
What they are paid
- Raise is temporary; he returns to his previous salary when he goes back to his prior job
Groveland city staff
Florida has no statewide pay database. The budget shows salary lines by department, not pay by position, and does not state a total staff count. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Groveland 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: $8.4M (2025-09-30). City of Groveland · Jun 26, 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 FY2026-27.
Comes from
- Taxes (property, utility, communications, fuel)$18.5M · 54%
- Permits, fees and special assessments (incl. fire assessment)$5.6M · 16%
- Transfers from other funds$4.1M · 12%
- State and county shared revenue (intergovernmental)$3.4M · 10%
- Charges for services$1.8M · 5%
- Interest and miscellaneous$683,600 · 2%
- Other$75,000 · 0%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Police$8.3M · 24%
- Fire$8M · 23%
- Innovation and technology$2.9M · 8%
- Streets$2.5M · 7%
- Parks and community services$2.4M · 7%
- Finance$1.8M · 5%
- Other$8.2M · 24%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Of each property-tax dollar a Groveland homeowner pays, about 32 cents goes to the city. The county's fire and stormwater taxes apply only outside the city. For FY2026-27 the council lowered the city rate to 5.5000 mills.
32¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Groveland
- Lake County School BoardState-required 3.0870 plus local 2.99806.085 · 34%
- City of Groveland5.7 · 32%
- Lake County5.0254 · 28%
- Lake County ambulance district0.4629 · 3%
- Lake County Water Authority0.294 · 2%
- St. Johns River Water Management District0.1793 · 1%
- Lake County voter-approved debt0.04 · <1%
- Total (mills)17.7866
2025 tax year (FY2025-26) rates for a home in the city of Groveland (Lake County). Lake County Property Appraiser · Oct 8, 2025
Who provides your services
Not everything in Groveland is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityGroveland Police DepartmentCity of Groveland
- 911 dispatchThe cityGroveland Police DepartmentFire units are dispatched by Lake County Emergency 911 Dispatch.City of Groveland
- Fire, rescue and emergency medical servicesThe cityGroveland Fire DepartmentThree stations with advanced life support fire engines.City of Groveland
- Water and sewerThe cityCity of Groveland utilitiesCity of Groveland
- Parks and recreationThe cityCity of Groveland Parks & RecreationCity of Groveland
- Planning and zoningThe cityCity of GrovelandCity of Groveland · Jun 26, 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 | Sunny Isles BeachFL | GrovelandFL | DebaryFL | Palmetto BayFL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 22,801 | 23,827 | 24,529 | 25,217 |
| Top administrator's base pay | Not current (2023) | $210,000 | $235,108 | Not current (2020) |
| Council member pay | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | $9,849 | $12,000 |
| General fund per resident | $4,331 | $1,432 | $1,021 | $979 |
| Debt per resident | $305 | $1,669 | $88 | $330 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $1,184 | $431 | $0 | $0 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 15.4 | — | 2.1 | 2.5 |
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). Debary and Palmetto Bay pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Groveland publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- Yes: Audited financial report filed on time Florida Auditor General
- Yes: Adopted budget posted onlineThe FY2027 adopted budget, proposed budget and hearing presentations are posted on the city's Budgets page. City of Groveland
- Partly: Council pay stated in a public document City of Groveland · Sep 21, 2026
- No: Employee pay publishedThe budget shows salary lines by department, not pay by position. Florida has no statewide pay database. City of Groveland · Sep 21, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- The interim city manager's temporary salary is about $210,000 while the council searches for a permanent manager. When does the council expect to hire one, and at what pay?
- Fire moved into the general fund in FY2027, paid partly by a $4.1 million fire assessment. How will fire costs be covered as the city adds Fire Station No. 3?
The fiscal year starts Oct. 1. The proposed budget is released around June or July and presented at a budget workshop. The council holds two public hearings in September; the FY2027 budget was adopted Sept. 21, 2026. See who is running for council
Help decide what comes next
What do you want to know about Groveland next?
One tap, no sign-in. We count answers; we never show who chose what.
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?
See something wrong? Report an error
Something wrong or missing? Tell us what and where, with a link to a source if you have one. Reports feed the next verification run.