Town of Olds residents will be seeing an average increase of $3.90 per month on the municipal portion of their residential tax bill after town council passed the 2011 tax rate bylaw on April 26.
The increase works out to $46.79 per year higher on the average home, which was assessed last July at $278,574. This year, the typical homeowner will pay $1,500.68 in municipal taxes, a 3.2 per cent increase over 2010.
Cliff McDonald, director of corporate services, said no changes were made to the operating budget between December 2010 and the spring.
The operating budget this year is $6.8 million, while the capital budget came in at $8.9 million.
McDonald said while this year's budget does balance, administration does want to funnel any surpluses into reserves to amortize the town's assets.
“Part of what we wanted to do … is that we want to start creating a reserve because if there is any surplus left over … it goes towards the amortization of the assets that we haven't got fully funded at this point. The tax rate looks like a fairly consistent tax rate in the sense of three to three-and-a-half per cent. We think that's realistic going forward,” he said.
Mayor Judy Dahl said she believed the average $3.90-per month increase was acceptable for residents.
“To see the calculation come through for residential of a $3.90 increase per month is quite acceptable in a time when infrastructure … is so high on our priority (list). We're very happy with it,” she said.
The tax levy on individual taxpayers also includes an amount for the Alberta School Foundation, which will raise a total of $3,024,095 for 2011 and an amount for the Mountain View Seniors' Housing Foundation, which will raise $90,167 in 2011.
"To see the calculation come through for residential of a $3.90 increase per month is quite acceptable in a time when infrastructure ... is so high on our priority (list). We're very happy with it."Judy DahlOlds mayor
