Over 50 La Broquerie residents filled council chambers Wednesday evening to oppose a mill rate increase. But council approved one anyway.

The budget outlined on a house valued at $250,000 rural residents will pay an extra $110 due to a .975 mill rate increase, and Local Urban District (LUD) residents will be an extra $44 due to a .391 mill rate increase.

Reeve Lewis Weiss was the only member of council who did not vote in favour of the increase. He says, "I understand, obviously, if we don't have taxes and we don't pay taxes we get nothing, I understand that. I did campaign on keeping the taxes down, that was one of my things I was working for. So, I obviously side with the people and all the councilors are the people as well, it's not like they're someone else."

On a house valued at $250,000, in 2015 taxes in the municipality increased by $23.29, in 2016 they decreased by $112.28, and then in 2017 they increased by $0.45 in the rural area.

Reeve Lewis WeissWeiss says, "I'm sure it's probably always easier to remember the bad things than the good sometimes and I assume I'm guilty of it myself, and everything does go up. I mean, the cost of graders goes up, fuel goes up, even wages go up. So, it's a hard job and I'm sure at some points as council we get discouraged and we make decisions according to how things are, how we feel things are, and that's how we vote."

Residents were allowed to present to council and ask questions or make statements. Questions included why taxes can't stay status quo, why doesn't council cut from an area to reduce taxes, why are you increasing taxes when there's growth in the community. Statements included residents saying they're out of money and can't afford a tax hike, taxes are a concern, and residents feel they're not getting all the services they're paying for.

Weiss says the original mill rate increase was about .5 mill and during a budget meeting, another councilor suggested adding another approximate .5 mill to fix additional miles of Loewen Boulevard as a joint venture with the RM of Ste. Anne. He notes this was passed and that's why the rate increase is almost a full mill.

"Loewen Boulevard is a road that is very highly used, obviously not by everyone in the municipality, but by many in both municipalities - Ste. Anne and La Broquerie. We've done a bunch of work on it over the last three years, it's really looking good where we have repaired it."

Other capital projects for the 2018 budget include paving Carriere Road from St. Joseph to St. Roch, paving a portion of Gerard Tetrault and Martel Roads, as well the tertiary project, a Zamboni, dehumidifiers for the ice surface, public works mower, rural walking trails, generator for life station #2, and a play structure at the Marchand Community Club.

Weiss put forth a motion to decrease taxes by half a mill, but it was not seconded.

"I was disappointed. I guess I assumed that with the comments of the people maybe things would go different. But in the past too I've sometimes not voted for something and then it goes the other way, and that's just how it works."

The budget and financial plan were passed with a 6-1 majority vote.

Read More:
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La Broquerie Increases Mill Rate For 2017 Taxes