Council divided in approving Milton budget that will see municipal taxes rise by 4.58%
The 11 members of council spent little time discussing the increase during Monday’s marathon meeting, which saw only six of 11 councillors vote in favour of the controversial budget. Much of the divide and discussion came down to a 1 per cent tax levy that will establish a hospital expansion reserve fund.
Though Milton continues to enjoy one of the lowest property tax rates in the GTA, the 4.58 per cent increase was still too much for some councillors, including Milton’s mayor, to swallow.
“You’re always going to get differences, but a council split down the middle doesn’t send a very good message to the community and it doesn’t show a lot of confidence,” said Mayor Gord Krantz. “It sends a message that a lot of people are not comfortable with what’s going on. I hope it’s not a prelude of things to come.”
Voting against the budget were Krantz and councillors Tony Lambert, Greg Nelson, Rick Malboeuf and Mike Cluett. Voting for the budget were councillors Colin Best, Sharon Barkley, Cindy Lunau, Arnold Huffman, Rick Di Lorenzo and Zeeshan Hamid.
The increase isn’t nearly as steep as staff previously predicted was necessary, when an initial budget report suggested a levy of close to 7 per cent was needed. The report presented to the budget committee last week showed a 5.72 per cent levy, with options to bring that amount down to 2.08 per cent.
While a lot of Town Hall’s priorities were set during the previous council term, newly elected and returning councillors did make some slight changes to bring the increase closer to the rate of inflation. A $100,000 bike lane implementation program was reduced to $50,000 to be spread out over four years. The opening of the Milton Centre for the Arts and the new main library was delayed from April to June and a snowplow advertising campaign was eliminated from the budget.
The changes saved about $143,000.
The Town’s $164.2 million budget includes 80 infrastructure projects that total $85.6 million. The capital budget was largely influenced by eight multi-year projects pre-approved in 2010, which include the Main Street grade separation and several new facilities that should be operational by the year’s end.
On a $350,000 home, the 4.58 per cent increase translates to a $40.70 increase in the urban area and $34.05 for rural homes.
Combined with the regional, local and educational components of residential taxes, which account for 44 per cent, 29 per cent and 27 per cent respectively, Miltonians are looking at an overall tax increase of 2.2 per cent in the urban area ($19.41/$100,000 of assessed value) and 2.09 per cent in the rural area ($17.48/$100,000 of assessed value).
Just an FYI… according to reports today CPI rose to 2.4% in December. Rate of increase in town portion of budget spending was 3.58% (add in 1.0% levy) for 4.58%.
Last night council continued its marathon discussions on the budget and other items almost until the wee hours of the morning. Since taking office we have yet to finish a meeting before 11pm. Tiring pace to say the least, but that’s why we were elected.
In addition to debating the 1% tax levy for hospital expansion, the meeting included a number of pubic sessions for input on future developments around town. One of the contentious items was looking at the zoning for the north side of Main Street near Thompson Road. Business owners made a pitch to council, of which some of it made sense, about allowing certain types of zoning for that area that will help them decrease their vacancy rates and have more businesses in town. They are right. This area is the new gateway to the community with the Milton Centre for the Arts and the Superstore at that intersection. The zoning that is being allowed is still quite flexible but staff and council still had concerns when it comes to the types of zoning and the potential parking issues that might arise. Its not a dead end for the business owners, as they can still apply for zoning changes. The big thing that had to be considered is the development of the Main Street underpass and what the area will look like in the future. Thats getting underway this year and next…hopefully it wont take too long. My personal opinion is that this underpass should have already been started so that when its complete it can compliment the Arts Centre. As it stands now, we might have some traffic issues from people on the west side of town coming towards that area using residential streets like Woodward, Nippising and Childs to get to the Arts Centre…but that’s a debate for another day.
After all the public meetings were complete, council moved to discuss “ITEM 18” from the budget which was the 1% tax levy for the hospital expansion. Many of the same arguments were brought up again both on the pro and against sides of the arguement so really nothing new was discussed. In the end, via a recorded vote, the results were the same.
In Favour of the 1% tax levy: Clr Di Lorenzo, Hamid, Best, Lunau, Barkley, Huffman.
Against the 1% tax levy: Clr Cluett, Nelson, Lambert, Malbouef and Mayor Krantz.
We could continue to debate this forever on the “how” we get the funding until sometime next year. The points that I made were simple. We needed to have public input on this item as we HAVE the opportunity to do so. Some have stated taxes only as a last resort, but I honestly don’t feel that we’re there yet. We have the time to garner input and support from the public on this and move forward in less of a fractured way. The Chief of Staff at MDH along with the COO of MDH made presentations last night in support as they feel a fund is “critical” towards getting approval from the province.
The original staff motion in this budget was to have $100,000 from the community fund (funded by slot revenues and not tax dollars) placed into the reserve fund as a deposit to get it going and show the province we’ve put hard dollars into place. The tax levy motion introduced by Councillor Lunau replaced that $100,000 with the 1% on taxpayers bills. That $100,000 was later put back into the community fund through a notice of motion from Councillor Huffman to start a “matching” program with Milton service clubs.
An interesting development occurred last night when the Town Clerk informed us that the wording of the motion went against the municipal act. You cant initiate a tax levy on just one taxpayer. It has to be included in everyone’s tax bills including commercial, industrial and retail taxpayers. This complicates the issue even more as many of the businesses in town (downtown Milton etc) are small businesses. I know many of these people and they find it quite difficult to stay afloat and now we have added an additional 1% to their tax bill as well. Again, without any consultation with the public whatsoever.
The reality is that the tax is here. I did my best to convince my colleagues that it wasn’t the right thing to do right now. We have more time and we should use it to get the job done right and involve the people in the decision making process. The job now is to work with residents to educate them on whats going on in this process with the province, and what we will have to do in the future to fund this hospital expansion fund….without going BACK into taxpayers pockets with this levy.
I’d like to thank everyone over the past week who has emailed, called or personally spoken with me on this issue. Some of us will disagree with what happened but an overwhelming number of you were in support of the public consultation process and wish we did more. I promise I will do my best in the coming weeks and months to help that process along so that way we don’t have any more surprises like this and we work together as a town and most importantly as a unified council to get the desired result. Only time will tell if it’ll work of if it does, we wont really know if by doing this it made the difference. Milton is in competition with about 55 other municipalities who are struggling to do the right thing as well. They are raising money…a lot more than we are.
The need is there for Milton. That’s not in doubt. I will continue to pressure local officials to help me in convincing the province to recognize Milton, Canada’s fastest growing municipality, is in dire need of expansion of any kind to help improve the quality of health care services in town. Whatever services our new hospital will have … we need something now.
Town staff presented the budget committee a 2011 budget with a 4.86 per cent hike and included options to bring that percentage down to 1.66 per cent. The committee approved a 2011 budget with a 4.58 per cent tax increase.
A passionate debate extended into the early morning and left council divided, after a motion to introduce a last-minute hospital expansion tax narrowly passed with a 6-5 vote.
The motion to establish the 1 per cent levy came late in the budget deliberations, after the budget committee, which is made up of the mayor and all councillors, had settled on a 3.58 per cent increase on the local share of residential taxes (29 per cent of the property tax bill).
Ward 3 Councillor Cindy Lunau introduced the motion, which was followed by an impassioned speech that drew applause from the gallery in Council Chambers Monday night.
“You can try every way to say this community has grown to point where this is such a critical need that we as a council will go out on a limb, before we know what the price is, to get our piggy banks ready,” she said of the levy, which translates to a yearly increase of $8.89 for the average Milton home.
“It’s a small amount, but it will never be used for anything else but local share expansion. We need to show the Province we really are ready. There are a lot of communities out there saying they need a hospital — we have to say that we’re a community you can count on.”
Along with Lunau, voting in favour of the levy were councillors Colin Best, Sharon Barkley, Arnold Huffman, Rick Di Lorenzo and Zeeshan Hamid. Voting against the increase were Mayor Gord Krantz and councillors Tony Lambert, Greg Nelson, Mike Cluett and Rick Malboeuf — the harshest critic of the levy.
“You’re saying we’ll be sending a message to the Province,” he told Lunau. “My concern is we’ll be sending the wrong message. The message being, look what Milton did. They’re prepared to pick the pockets of taxpayers to fund something we (the Province) should be paying for.”
However, Halton Healthcare Services (HHS) President John Oliver said setting money aside for the expansion is “critical” in influencing the Province to move forward with the much-needed expansion.
“It’s almost a given now; from Sault Ste. Marie to Niagara you’re seeing communities having to step in with the local share burden.”
Last week HHS asked the Town of Halton Hills for $4.5 million for the Georgetown Hospital expansion.
Di Lorenzo said planning for the future renovation well in advance is the fiscally responsible thing to do. “If you think a four per cent increase now is difficult, if we don’t start saving money we’re going to be seeing eight, nine, and 10 per cent increases.”
Huffman added: “It’s our job to make tough decisions, and maybe those decisions are not popular. If I’m wrong, maybe I won’t be elected in four years. But I can do without $10 (a year) to support the beginnings of a new hospital and show the Province we’re serious about this.”
While none of the councillors opposed to the levy were opposed to the expansion, some felt a public meeting was in order before finalizing the increase.
“Where I have some difficulty is the fact mere months after being elected — and after many of us around this table talked about accountability with regards to the voters — I have a very difficult time accepting a 1 per cent tax levy with very little, if not any, public consultation,” said Cluett.
The same sentiments were echoed by Nelson, who reminded council when they voted to support HHS with a contribution for the local share of the expansion this past summer, a new tax was a “last resort.”
“We haven’t even seen the funding options for the hospital yet from finance (department) as to what our options are,” said the downtown councillor. “Is there an urgency —absolutely. But we have time at this point to consult with the public. We 10 people can’t come up with all the answers. We need to research more on the issue.”
The budget committee passed the 4.58 per cent tax increase in a 6-5 vote, with the same councillors who voted against the hospital levy voting against the budget.
Krantz said he wished council would have been able to come to a consensus on the budget, but throughout the evening the mayor maintained he wouldn’t support a local levy above the rate of inflation.
The 1 per cent hospital tax rate adds $2.54 for every $100,000 of residential assessment.
Combined with the regional, local and educational components of residential taxes, which account for 44 per cent, 29 per cent and 27 per cent respectively, Miltonians are looking at an overall tax increase of 2.2 per cent in the urban area and 2.09 per cent in the rural area.
The 2011 budget will be voted on during Monday’s council meeting
In what was described by Regional Councillor Colin Best as the highest attended levee, hundreds of people flowed into Milton’s Town Hall to be entertained by some amazing performances and served coffee, tea, and cupcakes by Milton’s Town Councillors.
You remember back in October, councillors were elected to serve the people of Milton…many didn’t think it was so literal.
Nine out of the eleven councillors (two couldn’t make it unfortunately being out of town on family holidays) did their very best in hosting this years Mayor’s New Years Levee at Town Hall. This event has always been put on by the Milton Historical Society and they did enjoy being on the other side of the event this year. Many people were amazed at how us councillors were able to serve up these great snacks.
I can tell you from personal experience, although tiring, everyone of us enjoyed doing it. I was even joking with the other councillors that we could almost form a company and set up a side business in catering 🙂 (Yes we ARE kidding)
It was great to see so many faces, young and old, at the levee (quite a few from Ward 6 as well) and answering questions and exchanging some holiday cheer. In the Milton Room (the West Wing of Town Hall) there was a presentation on upcoming projects that the town is involved with. I know for certain Councillors Colin Best and Cindy Lunau were quite busy getting people up to speed on how Milton will change in the coming years.
There was no shortage of entertainment in the lobby as well. The Milton Seniors “Song Spinners” were a huge hit with the crowd with holiday songs and many in attendance sang along. “A Capella Showcase” started off the afternoon with renditions of some traditional carols and it was a great way to celebrate a fantastic day.
This event couldn’t have been pulled off without the efforts of Councillor Cindy Lunau. Many thanks goes to her for coming up with the idea and getting us all organized and ready to serve. Other thanks goes to our gracious sponsors (I hope I get them all) Troy’s Diner, Tim Horton’s, Flour Girls – great cupcakes – & La Rose Bakery for their treats.
I can honestly say that council members are really looking forward to doing this again. It definitely adds a personal touch and really exemplifies what a levee is all about…meeting members of council and socializing with fellow residents.
Happy New Year everyone and thanks for coming out.
As at 1300 hours, Union Gas advises that approximately 400 homes have service restored. They hope to have the remainder completed this afternoon.
815AM UPDATE
Just received a call from Hawthorne Village PS and school classes are on for today despite the fire damage and Union Gas workers across the street.
745AM UPDATE
It looks like half the homes have been brought back online throughout the night by Union Gas workers. Many of you have emailed me around 2 or 3 AM saying that they were there…wow thats amazing. Union Gas stated this morning they are looking at getting everyone back up by later on this morning. If someone can stay home today as they go around or if you can have a neighbour with your key it could speed things up. If not, they will leave a contact number and as soon as you get home … call and they will have someone out very soon.
Again, I will try to find out how we can help this family out because I along with other people have been blown away by the tweets, emails and phone calls of concern and support fo this family, especially at this time of year. I was just on air with Scott Fox from Z1035 Morning Show (click HERE for the interview)and HE’S been called as well by hundreds of people on how they can help out. THIS is why Milton is the best place in the world! Updates will be coming soon.
1149PM UPDATE
Some gas services have been restored for homes in the affected area. I was at the warming centre at EC Drury earlier this evening and spoke with the represetnatives at Union Gas. The number of homes affected are approximately 500, instead of the originally reported 1200. They are running into some delays due to water in the pipelines that has to be removed.
Ive asked them to send me updates as the process goes and I’ll do my best to update this site as it comes in.
I spoke with Regional Chair Gary Carr (who is at the warming station as we speak) and he updated me that the union gas worker who was injured suffered second degree burns to his face and is at Milton Hospital with family. Everything looks good so far.
I also wanted to say big thanks to other Milton Councillors who came out to the warming station to lend a hand. Regional Councillor Colin Best, Ward 2 Councillor Greg Nelson and Ward 8 Councillor Zeeshan Hamid. We have a great team and this just proves it more.
AGAIN…there is a warming centre at EC Drury set up for people with no heat and they will put families up at the Best Western overnight so please, if you are at home and its cold especially with small children, head out to that area. Union Gas is doing what they can to get people up and running and it might be by the early hours of the morning before all service is restored.
Stay tuned!
806PM UPDATE
Ive uploaded CHCH News coverage of todays events. They were there on the scene and did extensive coverage of today’s fire and have an interview with the home owner as well. Great Job CHCH News.
Regarding homes that are currently in the process of having their gas turned off, PLEASE NOTE that there is a warming centre at EC Drury School on Ontario Street. It will get cold tonight and if youre by yourself, or dont think you can stay warm PLEASE go to the warming centre. Better safe than sorry.
More updates to come.
737PM UPDATE
For some more information on today’s events go to MILTONSEARCH.COM and their coverage of the fire. Between tweets of todays events, phone calls from obviously stressed out and scared residents in Ward 6, its been a busy day. Many people have been asking how they can help this family out. From what Ive been told by Councillor Colin Best is that the Red Cross has been called in and taking care of the immediate needs of the family. I should have more information tomorrow on how you can help out.
From the last news release I’ve received Mayor Gord Krantz is still on the scene from about 630PM onwards reviewing the progress. Thanks to everyone who tweeted, re-tweeted updates from myself and others on the scene and for your generous inquiries to help people out. THIS is what makes Milton the best place in the world.
Say a prayer for the family involved and I will have some more information tomorrow.
721PM UPDATE
NEWS RELEASE
December 15, 2010
Structural fire contained in Milton’s Beaty neighbourhood
On Wednesday, December 15, 2010 at approximately 2:30 p.m., a structural fire occurred at the intersection of Clark Avenue and Bennett Blvd in Milton. The fire is suspected to have been caused by damage to a natural gas line.
The fire has now been extinguished by the Milton Fire Department, and the area is safe for residents.
Three of nine interconnected townhomes at the intersection of Clark and Bennett have been affected by the fire. Approximately 10 to 20 homes in the area were evacuated.
Non-life threatening injuries were sustained by one Union Gas worker, who is currently in hospital.
As part of the repair process, natural gas service to approximately 500 customers in the area may be temporarily interrupted. The natural gas supply has been shut off to the affected residential area of Yates Blvd to the north, Thompson Road to the west, Clark Blvd to the south and Bennett and McDowell Avenues to the east.
Please note that Union Gas representatives will need to enter affected homes and businesses to safely turn on all natural gas appliances and equipment. Union Gas employees or their representatives showing proper identification will be going door-to-door to do this. If residents cannot be at home, please consider leaving a key and access instructions with a neighbour.
In the unlikely event that your home has no heat and you do not have friends or family nearby to visit, Halton Region has opened a warming centre in the auditorium of E.C. Drury High School at 215 Ontario Street South in Milton. The centre will be open as long as needed. Families are advised to bring books, activities, etc., to keep children entertained during their time at the centre. No pets will be allowed in the warming centre.
Please ensure at least one member of your household remains at home as Union Gas representatives need to turn on all natural gas appliances and equipment in affected homes in order to restore gas service.
For continued updates, contact 311 or visit www.milton.ca until the situation has been resolved. For Union Gas customer service, call 1-877-969-0999.
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For further information, please contact: On Duty Staff Sergeant
Halton Regional Police Service
905-825-4777 ext. 2400
As I pointed out in a previous post, and commented on by another Milton blogger Zeeshan Hamid, there was a letter to the Champion outlining several instances of aggressive drivers in the Town of Milton. It seems to be an ongoing problem with no real direction on what changes can be made.
What can be done? There seems to be two different problems here. One of them is aggressive driving and speeding in residential areas and the second being on the main roads like Derry and James Snow Parkway among other major intersections.
I’ve talked about traffic calming zones with speed bumps for residential streets to force drivers to slow down in areas around schools and where kids walk and play. On the Hawthorne Villager Forum, people have talked about other ideas that possibly include a form of photo radar.
Raising awareness doesnt seem to work well. You can have blitzes by police on a regular basis, but it seems that people go back to their old habits of driving 10km/hr over the speed limit because they can get away from it.
Why not make the speed limit 40km/hr in every residential area…no execptions. If youre driving around homes, where there could be children crossing the street or bikes on the road the limit is 40km/hr. This way if police do catch speeders, the fines will be increased and maybe someone will think twice about going over the speed limit.
There have been comparisons to speeding on the highways and the main streets and residential streets, and to me there is a huge difference. Highways have an “allowance” of being over the speed limit. Thats what fast lanes are for I’m told.
The fact of the matter is there are no fast lanes on Derry Road, Clark Blvd, Ferguson, Louis St Laurent, Trudeau or any other residentail street. That arguement is mute.
It seems to be an ongoing issue. Any ideas out there? Let’s discuss.
Sep 04, 2009
DEAR EDITOR:
In regard to Cristina Drapeau’s recent letter about aggressive drivers in Milton, I couldn’t agree with her more.
I have lived in Milton for about seven years now and shortly after moving in I started to notice the exact same problems at the same intersections — Derry Road at Trafalgar Road and Derry at James Snow Parkway.
Other drivers have always used the merging lane as a quick pass lane and feel they have the right of way to merge aggressively.
I’ve witnessed a large amount of road rage and aggressive driving. Many of these drivers I see offend repeatedly on a daily basis. At least a few give a wave when you let them in.
Although I understand that the police can’t be everywhere all the time, I feel that everyone should know there’s something citizens can do about this problem. It’s called Community Road Watch.
It’s a community program where if you witness another driver demonstrating unsafe driving behaviour you can report that driver and incident.
The police will send the driver a letter explaining their unsafe behaviour and ask for their voluntary compliance.
If the driver receives multiple letters, then the police may contact the driver and potentially lay charges if they feel it necessary.
It’s quite simple to do. Just remember or jot down the information of the incident, including licence, vehicle, time, driver description, time, and location. You then report it by giving the report to your local police station.
There’s even an on-line system for reporting at www.haltonroadwatch.ca to make it even easier.
However, I do feel it’s important that one takes their time and considers what they’re reporting and if it’s correct or if we are letting our frustration get the better of us.
Town staff presented the budget committee a 2011 budget with a 4.86 per cent hike and included options to bring that percentage down to 1.66 per cent. The committee approved a 2011 budget with a 4.58 per cent tax increase.
