Property taxes are going up for commercial property owners in Davidson.
Overall, the municipal levy is up about 5 per cent, or $47,000, to raise $1,074,998 in revenues from property taxes to help balance Davidson’s 2014 $2.2 million operating budget.
Council approved the budget at its April 24 meeting.
Commercial property owners will see the biggest increase in their tax bills. Council decided to raise the commercial millrate from 21.41 to 25.61 and increase the base tax by $50. The base tax charged on vacant lots is going up from $400 to $450 and the base tax charged on a lot with improvements will now be $500.
Meanwhile, council reduced the residential millrate from 13.55 to 12.93 and the agricultural millrate from 15.28 to 14.52.
Most residential property taxes will remain about the same as last year, town administrator Gary Edom said.
Instead, council decided to shift the tax increase onto commercial ratepayers.
This news may appease residential property owners, some of whom, saw substantial tax increases in 2013 due to new assessments taking effect.
Edom said, as a result of the reassessment, residential property values went up significantly, while some commercial properties values decreased.
The town raises the remainder of its revenues needed to operate and maintain the municipality from federal and provincial operating grants, water and sewer rates and various fees and charges. Council transferred $304,000 from reserves to help balance the budget, which also contains a small surplus of $5,150.
About $200,000 of those reserves are coming from the recreation reserve fund and will be used to pay for repairs to the town hall roof, work that was completed this winter, which is why the item, although budgeted for in 2013 appears again in 2014.
Council also decided to withdraw about $100,000 from the utility reserve to cover costs of repair and maintenance work on the water tower as well as to install a new water line that will connect the reserve tanks at the water treatment plant.
To read more please see the May 5 print edition of The Davidson Leader.