Montrose has completed the reconsideration and final adoption of the 2015 budget and property tax bylaws.
At Monday night’s regular meeting, council members had the final reading for both the bylaws, following months of drafts, public consultations and working to reduce the tax increase as much as possible.
The tax bylaw passed with a 2.5 per cent jump, translating to a slight increase for the average village homeowner.
Along with the property tax increase, user fees have increased $11.00 per year across the board for all Montrose residents.
The dollar amount that village ratepayers will see on their next tax bill depends on the assessed value of their homes.
For a house assessed at $100,000, there will be a miniscule annual increase of $7.62.
Property taxes for a home assessed at around $200,000 will see an extra $15.00 on their next bill.
Homes that have been assessed at $300,000 will come with an increase of $22.37.
The property tax increase will net the village an extra $11,167 to spend within the municipality.
The tax increase started at three per cent, but village staff rearranged some expenditures and revenues, ending up with an increase of 2.5 per cent.
The $2,471,431 village spending plan was put together on short notice, but meets all the village’s needs, says Bryan Teasdale, chief administrative officer in Montrose.
“It was a tight deadline with staffing changes around here, but council had some really good direction and I think we have a good budget moving forward,” he said. “We have a good plan for the next couple of years. We were tight on time, but council did a good job of going through everything.”
