MAPLETON – Council has approved a slightly higher tax increase compared to last year's budget.
Approving a 3.55 per cent increase at a Mapleton council meeting Tuesday evening, township treasurer Patrick Kelly said staff achieved this number by deferring or recalibrating additional service level changes, staffing requirements and capital initiatives "in an effort to maintain the levy increase to forecast."
He also said approving the budget would allow the township to bid on projects sooner than other Ontario municipalities.
An increase of 3.55 per cent represents $350,341 and would cost the average property owner $65.63 annually or $5.47 per month. This does not include the county portion of the tax bill.
An increase of approximately 5.9 per cent was previously forecast for 2025.
"This is a community's budget. It's not my budget or senior management's or yours. It's Mapleton's budget, and I think it's something that we can all be proud of," said Kelly.
At the meeting, newly sworn-in councillor Lori Woodham asked why councillor benefits, which represent $28,750 in the 2025 budget, weren't deferred indefinitely as was previously requested by Coun. Amanda Reid.
Kelly said it's included in the budget because staff don't know whether the motion will be defeated or not. If defeated, Kelly said the funds would be included in the township's infrastructure funds.
"They don't disappear into the oblivion," said Kelly. "They end up in a reserve fund and fund future capital for the community."
The township had a 3.48 per cent increase in 2024.
Isabel Buckmaster is the Local Journalism Initiative reporter for GuelphToday. LJI is a federally-funded program.
