The City of Kimberley has released its proposed five-year financial plan, which includes a 5.58 per cent increase in property taxes.
City of Kimberley officials said this means an average assessed home with a value of $427,977 would see a $136 increase to their municipal tax bill.
“Funding the proposed budget for 2022 requires an increase of 5.58 per cent over the combined total of the Property Value Tax and Flat Tax collected last year,” said city officials.
The report notes that the increase planned for 2022 follows nominal increases in an effort to curb the financial impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. For context, Kimberly had a zero per cent increase in 2020 and a 1.6 per cent increase in 2021.
“The average annual tax increase of 0.8% over the last 2-years has resulted in the City’s budget losing pace with the significant inflationary impact that the pandemic has had on the cost of goods, supplies and commodities,” said city staff. “The proposed increase for 2022 is needed to catch up with inflation and to ensure sufficient staffing and goods and supply budgets to maintain expected service levels in a volatile cost climate.”
Kimberley’s parcel tax will also be increased after it was reduced to $88.51 last year. City officials said since the Aquatic Centre is now operating at full capacity, the parcel tax will be brought up to pre-pandemic levels and will be set at $204.03.
The budget also highlights a number of major infrastructure projects the municipality will see in the future, including nearly $1-million for Boundary Street reconstruction work, almost $500,000 to repair the 8th Avenue Watermain and close to $380,000 for annual road rehabilitation work.
City officials said the most significant capital project in the five-year plan will see $95.2-million spent over three years, from 2024 to 2026, for the anticipated construction of a new wastewater treatment plant.
A grant application has been made, requesting funds to cover 73.33 per cent ($69.8-million) of the project. The remainder will be paid with a loan, covering 24.37 per cent ($23.2-million) of the cost, while 2.2 per cent ($2.2-million) will come from the city’s reserve funds.
“The debt payments resulting from the long-term borrowing are proposed to be funded through the implementation of a Parcel Tax commencing in 2026,” said the report.
The plan will be up for adoption during Kimberley’s city council meeting on May 5th
A summary of Kimberley’s 2022-2026 five-year financial plan can be found below.
More: 2022-2026 Five Year Financial Plan (City of Kimberley)