Newmarket's proposed 2021 budget trimmed by $800K, for 1.98% tax increase

Water, wastewater and stormwater rates will increase, too, if the final version of the budget is approved Dec. 14

Newmarkettoday.ca
Dec. 8, 2020
Alan S. Hale

After trimming about $800,000 from Newmarket's proposed 2021 budget, staff presented a final version today that would see property taxes increase by 1.98 per cent.

The hike would add $42.86 to the tax bill of a home valued at $700,000 on a 564 square-metre lot.

Town treasurer Mike Mayes initially presented a draft of the operating and capital budgets on Oct. 6 that included a proposed 2.99 per cent property tax increase, along with increases to water, wastewater, and stormwater rates.

Earlier in the process, the 2021 budget was projecting a substantial deficit. But after months of looking for cost-cutting measures and other efficiencies, Mayes said he anticipates that Newmarket will have a $200,000 surplus by the end of third-quarter next year.

"It took a lot of work to get to this point," said Mayes at Monday's council meeting. "Staff was challenged with finding just over $500,000 in savings, and they did that on top of also having a quarter-million in additional insurance costs. So almost $800,000 in budget reductions were found just to get us to this point. "

Water and wastewater rates will increase by four per cent, which is in line with a 10-year plan that began in 2017, which will see homeowners using 200 cubic metres of water per year pay an additional $49.44.

Stormwater fees will also increase by 10 per cent, which will add an additional 35 cents to bill each month.

Provided there are no last-minute amendments to the budget, it will be formally adopted next week.

Mayor John Taylor said this brings to a close an unusual and difficult budgeting process, as a result of the unforeseen impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, not just on the municipal revenues and expenses, but on taxpayers' lives.

"This has been the most challenging budgeting process I've seen in my 15 years. During 2020, we had to deal with a rapidly changing fiscal landscape that required us to pivot very quickly. I thank the staff for the terrific job they did managing so many moving parts, getting costs down, managing revenue shortfalls, putting in place safety protocols and working with residents to keep some recreational activities operational," Taylor said.

"From a financial perspective, it was very challenging just to make the numbers work. Now we are heading into 2021, and we see that perhaps we are facing another very challenging year, I would argue, more challenging."

According to a Town of Newmarket survey, residents ranked maintaining public service levels as their No. 1 priority.

Councillor Christina Bisanz said the budget does just that, while also trying to minimize financial impact on taxpayers during an especially tough year.

"Given the challenges of the past year, and that what residents are experiencing is likely to get worse before it gets better, there will be a lot of families who will be struggling over the next few months. (We need to) make every effort we can to reduce the financial burden while still making sure we have the means to provide supports," she said.

"It's very difficult to balance those two objectives."

The budget includes $37.9 million for capital projects that include:

Skate park - $2 million
Trail and field lighting - $725,000 
Fire station - $7.1 million (Town of Aurora is contributing 40 per cent)
Fire trucks - $2.4 million (another cost-sharing project with Aurora)
Fleet replacements - $1.5 million
Municipal infrastructure and road resurfacings - $6.1 million
Bridges and culverts program - $500,000
Traffic safety projects - $115,000
Mayes said the financial pain from the pandemic is likely to impact the 2022 budget, as well. The town already has estimates additional costs ranging between $608,000 to 1.38 million just for January to June.

Council still needs to be presented with a reserve fund budget based on the approval and the entire budget in financial statement form before the package can be adopted, which is expected to happen on Dec. 14.