Photo: Goderich Town Hall
Goderich Town Council has approved some changes to the 2023 Draft Budget.
During a quick meeting on Tuesday, council heard options from Treasurer Deanna Hastie, who presented two options, one that would have a tax rate increase of 4.25%, and another that would lead to an increase of 4.75%.
Council chose the higher option, as it included more funding available for road repair, which Deputy Mayor Trevor Bazinet mentioned was a big concern during the most recent municipal election among residents.
Hastie suggested that council approve their chosen option, and then wait until Huron County Council finalized the county budget for this year, to allow Goderich’s municipal staff to get a final number for the total tax rate and tax levy increases.
Mayor Myles Murdoch pointed out during the meeting that it had been five years since the last tax rate increase, and given that 2022 had been a challenging year for cost of living and inflation, having some sort of increase was unavoidable in order to keep up with growth.
He also referenced that Huron County was looking at an increase of 6.61%, and Central Huron’s council approved an increase of more than 7% earlier this week.
Town staff were also able to find reserve funds that would help cover the cost of proposed projects, such as the Waterfront Reserve Fund helping to cover the cost of new parking metres at the waterfront, and the carryover costs of the roof replacement for the airport funded by the Airport Reserve Fund.