Lee County is facing a significant financial challenge, as it's looking at an $18 million deficit.
County leaders have discussed several options to address the financial shortfall, including possibly raising the sales tax, tolls and other fees.
"I think that you're overbuilding Fort Myers and Cape Coral. They're running out of water. They're overtaxing us. Our insurance is outrageous," said Lee County resident Bill Elston.
Elston hopes Lee County makes budget cuts instead of making residents make up the difference.
During last week's budget workshop, commissioners were surprised to learn that the deficit had grown from $13 to $18 million. During the meeting, the property appraiser talked about how property values have fallen in the last year.
Commissioner David Mulicka says they must tighten their belts before committing to any final decisions.
"Before we look at additional revenue sources, we have to be very careful that we are keeping our spending reduced as responsibly and as low as possible. I've personally, in our budget workshops and strategic planning, asked all of our departments and constitutional officers to bring us a 5% reduction in the budget from last year, because we could see that this was going to be a challenging year," Mulicka said.
Some priority projects in the budget are in limbo, including work on the 10-mile canal, three public safety stations, EMS stations and road improvements.
"I think that the solution that they need to revamp, they need to revamp their business ideals, they need to revamp on each project that they do. They need to come together. They don't need to pass anything else down to us. There are other ways," said Lee County resident Yolanda Jones.
County leaders also talked about raising electric franchise fees and getting a $25 million loan.
"So it's important to know that no one item is off the table. We are simply going through the exercise and analyzing the budget. The property appraiser's final report for the year to come down on July 1," said Mulicka.
No decisions have been made, and a final vote is not expected until September.