After yo-yoing between figures, the District of Squamish's 2013 property tax increase has been trimmed.
Following the public hearing on the proposed 2013 municipal budget, municipal officials shed more than $500,000 from the draft, the district's manager of finance told council at Committee of the Whole on Tuesday (April 16). That reduced the municipal property tax increase for the average residential dwelling from 12.2 per cent to 9.9 per cent, Joanne Greenlees said.
As a result, the average single family home's anticipated increase falls from 11 per cent to 8.8 per cent.
Local business owners decried the proposed 15.4 per cent property tax increase for businesses at last week's public 2013 budget meeting. Adjustments were made to the jump, with 5.2 per cent having been shaved off the increase, levelling it out to 10.2 per cent.
From the onset, we all knew that this was a very difficult budget, Greenlees said.
Staff struggled to find areas within the plan to reduce, she said. The new proposal doesn't impact council's priorities, but it does delay some of the fiscal goals, Greenlees noted. The proposal removes the downtown revitalization project from the budget until it is defined. The $100,000 bill for dredging, currently taking place in the Mamquam Blind Channel, will be paid for from an accumulated surplus.
Among other things, the proposed budget axes $20,000 going toward additional winter lighting and reduces trail maintenance on connector trails.
In all of these things it has to be underlined that we are delaying the inevitable, Greenlees said.
Coun. Patricia Heintzman questioned the need for an additional part-time human resources (HR) position, calling for it to be dropped. The district's core services review recommends an extra full-time HR staff, but officials are requesting only the half-time employee be hired, Greenlees said.
Coun. Susan Chapelle said she would like to see the core services review before council decreases staffing levels. Coun. Ted Prior agreed, adding at that time it will be a weighty conversation.
The budget still needs to be finalized. Municipal staff are gathering feedback from council before it comes to first reading.
