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LV spending, taxes on the rise

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It’s now official. Laurentian Valley’s municipal tax levy will increase 2.5 per cent in 2013.

Laurentian Valley council approved the budget at its regular meeting Tuesday night. The budget allows for approximately $10.6 million in expenditures, an increase from $8.6 million from 2012.

The increase can primarily be attributed to an enhanced capital campaign which includes the extensive Roy Street project to replace sanitary and storm sewers between Bruham Avenue and Karen Street. On Tuesday, Treasurer/Deputy Clerk Charlene Jackson informed members of council that while the township applied for a grant to assist with some of the costs of the project, the application was unsuccessful. The project will go ahead as planned, but she will be bringing a report to council in June to help it decide how the project will be funded – either out of reserves or by financing the project. The price tag on the Roy Street project is an estimated $760,000 and the township had applied for a $534,375 grant.

When determining its budget, council had to consider the assessment figures it received from the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation, which showed household assessment in Laurentian Valley increased by 6.12 per cent. This means for a house valued at $100,000 in 2012 and now valued at $106,120 on average, the taxes will increase from $339.15 to $357.12 on the municipal portion of the tax bill, a jump of $17.97. Combined with the County of Renfrew and education taxes, on the average of $106,120 worth of assessment residents will see an overall increase of $37.90, or a tax bill of $965.54.

According to MPAC, the average property in Laurentian Valley was worth $205,904 in 2012 and increased to $218,507 in 2013 because of reassessment. This is the first year of the four-year phase-in period which runs to 2016.

In the budget council approved an increase to the flat rate for water from $450 to $500 and an 11.11 per cent increase to the metered water rates.

At the end of 2013, Laurentian Valley’s reserves will sit at about $3.8 million, down from $4.5 million at the end of 2012, Jackson noted.

In 2013, council agreed to put $1 million into reserves, but drew down $1.7 million. The largest withdrawal from reserves was about $600,000 from the federal gas tax money received by the township. Laurentian Valley has been receiving $284,204 in federal gas tax and because the money can only be held onto for two years, it was necessary to use the amount otherwise it would have been lost. At the end of 2013, the township will still have approximately $290,000 in gas tax money remaining, which includes the amount received this year.

Jackson also told council that she has received an indication from the auditor that the surplus is greater than originally anticipated in the draft proposal, so she will be bringing a report to council in June looking for direction on how to handle the surplus.

Tina Peplinskie is a Daily Observer multimedia journalist

tina.peplinskie@sunmedia.ca

Twitter: @TPeplinskieOBS

 

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