Council has approved the five-year financial plan that will see a focus on safety and sustainability and endorsed the proposed tax rate bylaw.
“The financial plan meets the desire of residents to ensure community safety is a top priority with the hiring of more RCMP officers and more firefighters,” says Mayor Julius Bloomfield. “The high level of service expected is also maintained, there is a focus on housing affordability and it does these things in a fiscally sustainable way.”
The tax rate bylaw will receive final approval at the May 2 meeting. The tax rates contained in the bylaw include the approved 9.5 per cent increase, which will see residential property owners pay an average of $14 more per month and commercial property owners will pay an average of $55 more per month.
Highlights include:
The budget includes an increase of 3.4 percent to meet operational expectations, inflationary pressures and contractual obligations, as well as a 2.8 percent increase to meet the strategic priorities of Council and enhance operations. This budget also contains the first year of the tax deferral made by the previous Council that is being phased in at 3.3 percent per year over the next three years and utilizes surplus reserves to offset the deficit until fully phased in. Capital projects identified in the budget are funded primarily through reserves.