After a number of meetings, the Municipality of West Grey now has a budget that is now ready to go before Council for final approval.
Mayor Christine Robinson says Council worked diligently to bring forth a responsible budget that addresses the current needs of West Grey while keeping an eye of the future in terms of infrastructure, vitality and community readiness.
Council landed on a 6.64% increase to the tax levy which represents a 120 dollar increase on an average home assessed at 300 thousand dollars.
The proposed 24-million-dollar budget includes 14.2 million in Operations and 9.9 million in Capital projects.
A public meeting will be held on March 17th at 7 pm in Council Chambers, in which the Director of Finance will provide a report on the proposed budget providing residents with a chance to learn more and ask questions.
Robinson says if all goes as planned, the budget will come before Council for final approval on April 7th at the 10 am Council Meeting.
Robinson is very proud of the proposed 2020 budget which aligns with the three pillars of the West Grey Strategic Vision Plan: Work Together, Build a Better Future and Promote Community.
She says “We have increased our partnerships, invested in infrastructure and made key investments to improve our community in West Grey.”
Robinson adds “West Grey is growing, so these investments are incredibly timely.”
Budget highlights include:
-$205,000 to save the McQuarrie bridge on Concession 2. (The remainder of this $580 thousand rehabilitation project will come from Federal and Provincial grants.)
-In total West Grey has budgeted nearly $500,000 towards bridges for 2020 with more than $275,000 going into reserves should shovel-ready projects receive grant approvals.
-$400,000 for a new four-season grader.
-$100,000 from the economic development budget reserves for the Community Improvement Plan
-West Grey will partner with Grey Highlands to resurface a boundary road splitting the costs
-$12,000 has been budgeted into sustainability initiatives, including a Climate Action Plan and waste diversion projects.
-$150,000 to complete the final surfacing for the Bruce and Lambton Streets project in Durham
-$560,000 for a new pumper truck for the Neustadt Fire Department.
-$75,000 will be put into reserves for a new police station
Other community improvement projects include: new stairs at the Durham ball diamond; work on a portion of the parking lot at the Ayton Arena and support for youth training in the trades through continued partnership with Launch Pad.