Aventura and Sunny Isles Beach city governments go head-to-head Sept. 22 when each holds its second required public hearing on its new budget. The only suspense is which will wrap up the formality quickest.

In the first round of hearings, nary a voice was raised in comment on either spending plan. But Aventura seems to have the inside track to claiming the speed title after dispatching the subject in just over seven minutes Sept. 8. The Sunny Isles Beach hearing Sept. 10 took at least twice as long, although, to be fair, the budget hearings was part of a quick 35-minute meeting that included other agenda items.

For both cities, the economy hasn’t been kind. The county tax assessor calculates that across the county, property values have fallen more than 17 percent, taking a bite out of each city’s major source of revenue. But the cities took different approaches to the 2009-10 budget cycle.

For Aventura, the strategy is business as usual. The millage rate continues unchanged at 1.7261 per $1,000 of assessed property value. Reserves will be tapped to maintain city services at existing levels.

For Sunny Isles Beach, over $900 million in new construction provided a buffer to the impact of falling property values. Still, the city’s property tax revenue is down 2.6 percent and city commissioners see more trouble next year. So they worked with city staff to slice $1.7 million from the budget. The city will take advantage of part of the “roll back rate,” the adjustment it’s entitled to make to stabilize municipal revenue. The new rate of 2.65 mills per $1,000 of assessed valuation still means most residents will see a slight decrease in their city property tax bill.

In contrast to the raging county and school district budget wars nearby, this is tame stuff and likely the reason residents skipped the first round of budget hearings.

Aventura’s second hearing starts at 6 p.m. at the government center, 19200 West Country Club Drive; Sunny Isles Beach’s hearing begins at 6:30 p.m. at the government center, 18070 Collins Ave.