The Blue Mountains council has finished its budget deliberations and has reached its original target of a 2.5 per cent local tax increase.
Council held three straight full days of budget deliberations on Jan. 8, 9 and 10 and the process concluded with a budget that met council’s original goal of a 2.5 per cent local increase.
Council’s big move during the budget deliberations was to take $1.3 million from the projected 2023 budget surplus and move it into the 2024 budget as revenue reducing a projected 9.58 per cent increased to 2.5 per cent. The full story about that decision can be found here.
In 2024, the town will spend $120 million on its operating, capital and water and waste water budgets.
When the town’s 2.5 per cent increase is combined with Grey County’s increase of 6.3 per cent and the school board’s zero per cent increase the overall tax increase will be approximately 3.65 per cent over 2023. In 2024, a home assessed at the average value of $555,000 will pay approximately $54 more for local taxation and $133 more for Grey County taxation for a total increase of $186 for the year.
On the user pay side, an average home in The Blue Mountains connected to the water and wastewater systems will pay an additional $43 in 2024 for those services.
Capital budget highlights in 2024 include:
- $1.2 million to replace a front-line emergency response vehicle for the fire department
- $6 million for the engineering of Thornbury West Reconstruction Phase 2
- $13.3 million to replace the Craigleith Fire Hall and renovate the current building for operations and community services
- $16 million to replace the Thornbury Wastewater Treatment Plant outfall
- $30.6 million for the renovations at the Craigleith and Mill Street Sewage Pumping Station and the forcemain to the Thornbury Wastewater Treatment Plant
CAO Shawn Everitt praised council and town staff for their approach to the budget discussions.
“We learned a lot through this process. I really appreciate the discussions, there were great questions,” he said.
Everitt said at an upcoming committee of the whole meeting he would conduct a “debrief” with council about the budget process with an eye towards improving the format and process for 2025.
Deputy Mayor Peter Bordignon chaired the three budget meetings and he thanked staff and council for reaching “a fiscally responsible” budget for 2024.
“Seven members of council all worked together to pass a budget,” he said. “It has been a very good few days.”
Since the budget meetings were committee of the whole sessions, council will have one final opportunity to consider the 2024 budget at its regular meeting on Jan. 29. Following that meeting, staff will release the fully updated draft budget to the public by Feb. 7. A full public meeting about the budget will be held on March 12. Staff will report back to council on the public’s comments about the budget on March 18 and the final budget bylaw is expected to pass on April 2.
