District of North Vancouver municipal tax rates are ticking up three per cent higher this year.
Council passed their budget last month including a two per cent increase to cover inflation in operating costs like a negotiated wage increase, and an additional one per cent for capital projects and replacement of aging infrastructure.
For the typical single-family homeowner, it should result in a jump of about $62 over last year’s tax bill, according to district staff, although those whose assessments went up by more than the average 36 per cent will likely see a bigger increase.
Utility rates are also creeping up by about one per cent. The district anticipates the 2017 costs for water, sewer, solid waste and recycling will be about $1,556 for a single-family home.
New items in the capital plan for this year include the Maplewood Fire Facility, design works for the new Lions Gate and Lynn Creek Community Recreation Centres, an artificial turf field at Kirkstone Park, Belle Isle Park, the Ross Road Bridge replacement and flood mitigation works.
Council has been using a similar formula for budgets in recent years.
“I think it’s a prudent budget with the tax rate just around three per cent. There are water and sewer as well but they’re justifiable in light of the cost impacts we’re adopting,” said Coun. Robin Hicks, who is also a former municipal director of finance. “We have been planning for infrastructure replacement, which is a major issue for most municipalities, and I think we’re in good standing in that we’ve got up to 12 per cent allocation of our annual tax levy directed towards that annual asset replacement.”
But, prudent as it may be, many residents will find the items on their wish list didn’t make the cut, Coun. Lisa Muri pointed out, as a lot of council’s spending on new amenities is going to areas that are densifying.
“I just want council to remember we are welcoming people to our community and we are looking at densifying some areas of our community and town centres but there’s still an existing population that lives here as well who have been paying taxes for many, many years, some of them decades,” she said.
“These little bits of improvements in their neighbourhoods are really important.”
That is the perennial struggle with budgets that any municipality must deal with, Mayor Richard Walton responded.
“We certainly do try to address as many of these needs as possible but it’s always a challenge because on one hand, we’re getting requests to keep our tax increases down or reasonable, and at the same time, we’re trying to add on in many areas. I know there’s a balancing in that,” he said.
The district is the first North Shore local government to pass a budget this year. The city is currently debating a 3.4 per cent tax increase.
