Red Deer County council gave first reading to a bylaw that would trigger a two per cent increase in taxes for 2013 at last week's regularly scheduled council meeting.
The municipal plan would cover increased gravel hauling, mowing, paving and major construction projects in the Gasoline Alley area.
Administration had originally budgeted for a three per cent increase.
“We're very economical,” said Heather Gray, Red Deer County's director of corporate services. “We try to keep our levies down as much as possible.”
County residents would see taxes go up almost $8 per $100,000 in assessed property value (from $352.50 to $359.42). Non-residential property taxes would jump over $29 per $100,000 in assessed value (from $1,039.76 to $1,069.02).
First reading was approved unanimously.
“We're very cognizant that ratepayers don't like to pay a lot of taxes,” Gray said.
A total of $40 million of Red Deer County's $66.8-million budget comes from taxation. Last year council approved a $73.7-million fiscal plan.
Council also gave unanimous approval to budget amendments including changes to the Leva Avenue facelift, amendments for drainage projects, web-based software for county officials and changes to water infrastructure.
Gray said a strong reserve balance allowed the county to take advantage of the tight economic climate and get more bang for the taxpayer's buck by adding $1 million in additional paving, since current projects came in under budget.
Adding lights to the east side of the McKenzie Road overpass on the south end of Gasoline Alley was one of the reasons the overall cost of that improvement program's price tag went up, but Gray says 60 per cent can be raised through off-site levies.
“We're able to charge that back to the users of that area,” she said.
Coun. Penny Archibald said she's happy the county wants to tackle Gasoline Alley renovations this year, including the Leva Avenue roundabout and the new traffic lights at the overpass.
“The safety aspect there is just astronomical,” she said, noting she'll even drive into a farmer's approach in order to circumvent some of the heavy traffic buildup on McKenzie Road. “That's a bottleneck all the time.”
Archibald said she's also happy service levels for gravel hauling and public mowing are going up.
“The east part of the county has no gravel anymore,” she said. “It's more expensive hauling gravel from the west to the east part of the county.”
The net of all budget amendments totals $635,088 and will be funded by the tax increases.
Roadside mowing makes county roads safer because residents can spot danger lurking on the edge of the driving routes more easily, Archibald added.
“It has helped a lot with traffic accidents – with animals,” she said. “You can see into the ditches.”
It was important to allow the public to provide input into the tax rate bylaw, according to Archibald.
"This way the public has a chance to tell us what they think,” she said. "If they think we're out to lunch they can tell us. If they think we're being fiscally responsible they can tell us that too."
