A spokesperson for a local citizens group concerned about financial accountability is reminding Saanich’s incoming council about looming changes in the larger economic climate.
Stan Bartlett, chair of Grumpy Taxpayer$, said the group is looking forward to working with the new council after voters had “expressed a wish for major changes” in Saanich.
“Saanich and the [Greater Victoria] region — while prospering now — does not function outside the influence of a broader economy and world,” Bartlett said. “It doesn’t operate in a vacuum.”
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He pointed specifically to the interest rate hike announced Wednesday that he feels will translate into more taxes to fund the many capital projects needed, more pressure on an unaffordable housing market, higher wage demands from unions, and in general, more municipal budget challenges.
Bartlett also points to a recent survey that found many Canadians fear being pushed to the financial brink.
One in three respondents of the Ipsos survey, said they are concerned that higher interest rates could force them toward bankruptcy. Bartlett’s message is clear – some local taxpayers are already scraping along.
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While other issues such as affordable housing over-shadowed financial sustainability during the election, incoming councillor Ned Taylor linked the two issues during the campaign.
“For the past number of years, taxes have been rising faster than the rate of inflation – that’s unsustainable,” he said in September, an argument also made by the Canadian Federation of Independent Businesses (CFIB).
Citing “sky-high housing prices” Taylor said “no wonder people are forced to leave Saanich and live elsewhere.”
“Rather than endlessly raising property taxes on everyday residents who are already struggling to get by, our municipality needs to work towards saving resources and making services more efficient,” he added.
It is a message bound to get support from returning Coun. Karen Harper, who made financial sustainability a central pillar of her platform, highlighting anecdotes from local seniors, who are finding it more difficult to make ends meet.
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Incoming councillor Rebecca Mersereau has also highlighted financial accountability, but through the prism of intergenerational equity.
Mersereau said in the summer she plans to protect the interests of younger taxpayers challenging Saanich’s desire to keep taxes low in the present, thereby deferring future infrastructure costs to younger generations. Saanich has done a good job of avoiding the mistakes of other communities who have neglected their infrastructure, she said.
Similar to private homeowners, Saanich should continue to set aside revenues to maintain assets, she pointed out, unless it is willing to accept diminished services or face significantly higher costs in the future.
Mersereau acknowledges this argument could be read in favour of higher taxes, but she is unfazed. “I’m willing to take the heat.”
wolfgang.depner@saanichnews.com
