The Town of Golden Council has given third reading to the 2014 Tax Rate Bylaw, but not without a few reservations from council members.
Out of four tax rate scenarios drawn up by Chief Financial Officer Lisa Vass, council chose Scenario 4 (as was recommended by the Standing Finance Committee), which sees slight decreases for both Class 1 (residential) and Class 6 (Business/Other) as a whole.
Coun. Chris Hambruch, the sole councillor to vote against the bylaw, did so because he worries that the Town is missing an opportunity, and will pay for it next year.
The increase non-market value in the town (much of which was accounted for by the newly built Holiday Inn Express), picked up a significant component (approximately $35,000) of the two per cent tax increase ($85,000) that was approved in the Five Year Financial Plan.
On average (not all) property tax bills will not go up this year, and in fact, some may see a decrease.
A typical single detached residence that was, for example, assessed at $295,831 last year, and assessed at $283,872 this year, would see a drop in their property taxes from $1,561 last year to $1,547 this year. (Not all residences will see similar drops, it will depend on the property’s assessed value for this year).
The municipality could have implemented a tax increase this year, with a much smaller affect on tax payer (the missed opportunity Hambruch was referring to). Next year however, with no new hotels being built and utilities already at their legal maximum, the increase will have a stronger impact.
Mayor Christina Benty, although voting in favour of the bylaw, said she agreed with Hambruch “philosophically.” Had the Town had the assessment information during budget deliberations, perhaps they would have voted for a higher tax increase she said.
However, she believed this was the right way to proceed under the current circumstances.
