The public is invited to attend the Civic Centre on Monday for a special meeting at 7 p.m., at which time town council will vote on the 2004 budget it approved in principle at its April 26 meeting.
At that meeting, council opted for a tax hike of 14.67 percent for residential, multi-residential, pipeline, and farmland properties, along with an increase of 1.9 percent for commercial and 7.33 for industrial.
Mayor Dan Onichuk and Couns. Tannis Drysdale, Todd Hamilton, and Struchan Gilson voted in favour of the budget in principle, with Couns. Roy Avis and Neil Kabel being opposed.
While the tax rates approved in principle back on April 26 were for a 14.67 increase for residents, the net tax hike actually is 11.7 percent over last year after education taxes are factored in.
The second alternative councillors considered, but the majority of them opted not to choose, would have seen an increase of 15.8 percent for residential, multi-residential, pipeline, and farmland properties, a 7.7 percent hike for industrial, and no tax increase for commercial.
Mayor Onichuk had noted at the April 26 meeting that the end result was a far cry from the 67.5 percent bandied about months ago, and that council and management “have come a long way” in getting the 2004 budget completed.
“An 11.7 percent increase is a bit taxing on people, no pun intended, but we’re not going to be coming back looking for a 10 or 11 percent increase next year unless some catastrophic thing happens in the Town of Fort Frances,” the mayor added.
Monday night’s council meeting is slated to start at 6:30 p.m., with the special meeting following at 7. The council meeting will be preceded by the committee of the whole meeting at 5:30 p.m.
Other business at Monday night’s council meeting will include:
•a break open ticket licence application from the La Verendrye General Hospital Auxiliary at the Friendship Café from May 15-Nov. 15, 2004;
•a request from Confederation College for financial support regarding its eighth-annual scholarship golf tournament;
•a request for permission from Wayne Roy regarding the installation of a private fence over regulation height at his residence;
•a bylaw to approve a contract for the 2004 rehabilitation of sanitary sewer and watermains to LTL Contracting Ltd.; and
•a request from the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU) for the Ontario finance minister to review improving service quality at the Municipal Property Assessment Corp.
Fort Frances Times
Local News from Across the Rainy River District
