Osoyoos property owners are looking at a 2.93 per cent increase to their property taxes after Town of Osoyoos council tentatively approved its 2018 budget during a special budget meeting Thursday morning.

The cost to an average single-family residence with an assessment of $409,633 in 2018 versus an average assessment of $352,862 in 2017 is:

  • An increase of $31.90 to $610.52 in municipal taxes.
  • An increase of $36.97 to $207.44 in policing costs.
  • A decrease of $1.43 to $50.35 for fire protection.
  • An increase of $36.39 to $50.02 to service the new fire hall debt.
  • An increase of $3.90 to $134 for garbage/recycling.
  • An increase of $9.66 to $251.10 for sewer rates.
  • An increase of $13.42 to $348.96 for water rates.

This amounts to an increase of $131 to a total of $1,660.91, or just under $11 per month, in municipal taxes and user fees.

The budget is being presented to council with a 2.93 per cent increase to property taxes,” said the Town’s director of financial services Jim Zakall. “This is an increase of $71,000 in tax based revenue and new construction property taxation is estimated at $9,459.

“Debt payments for the Fire Hall started in 2017 and the full annual debt payments begin in 2018. This is paid for by the Town of Osoyoos, Osoyoos Rural Fire Protection District and the Osoyoos Indian Band.”

As has been the case over the past several years, local home and business owners are also looking at marginal increases to garbage and recycling fees, sewer and water rates.

Garbage and recycling fees are proposed to increase three per cent to $134 from $130.10. This increase is to account for the increase to garbage and recycling collection contract as well as the new contract taking effect July 1, with some subsidization from MMBC revenues, said Zakall.

Sewer rates are set to increase by $9.66 annually for a single-family residence. The annual cost will increase to $251.10 (four per cent) in the Town and to $344.10 (2.89 per cent) in Area A of the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen (RDOS). This will add $53,100 in revenue and is needed to maintain the same level of funding available for capital project, said Zakall.

Water rates are proposed to increase by $13.42 for a single-family residence to $348.96 (four per cent). This will increase revenues by $60,000, which is needed to increase funding available for capital projects.

Water district rates will increase by $13.45 annually for a single-family residence to $408.97 (3.4 per cent) to other water district rates, including irrigation rates. This will raise an additional $18,500 in revenues needed for capital projects.

Other significant expenditure increases/decreases include:

  • Wages and benefits will increase by $110,445 to account for a 1.85 per cent increase in wages for unionized workers with the Town of Osoyoos and 0.15 increase in benefits.
  • The RCMP budget has increased to $850,000 to account for the entire calendar year in 2018. Council negotiated and was able to reduce the cost sharing from six municipal members and total staff to five members and eight total staff for 2017 and 2018, with the ratio going up to six members and nine staff in 2019.
  • Revenues decreased by $15,720 for rental of the old health unit building.
  • A revenue loss of $11,000 from the departure of the summer Osoyoos Ringette School.
  • Legal fees increased by $5,000 to $45,000.
  • A 2018 feasibility study will be done looking at the Fire Chief position in Osoyoos at a cost of $25,000.
  • The elections budget for this fall’s municipal election is $25,000.
  • Park wages increased by $45,760 to account for increased cleaning for parks washrooms and reallocation of public works staff.
  • Debt charges have increased by $200,990 to account for the new fire hall construction project. In 2017, only fall interest was paid, but in 2018 interest and principal payments begin. The Town’s portion of the total fire hall debt of $281,390 is $192,668.

General operating expenditures, less transfers to other governments, transfers to reserves, resort municipality funding, contingencies and capital project expenditures, will increase from $577,477 to $6.46 million – a 9.81 per cent increase. Just over four per cent of that increase represents the increased costs for RCMP and 2.34 per cent for the fire hall debt.

Sewer operating services, less transfers, contingencies and capital project expenditures, will increase by $12,280 to $1.239 million in 2018, an increase of 1.05 per cent.

Water operating expenditures, less transfers, contingencies and capital project expenditures, will increase by $9,470 to $1.678 million, an increase of 0.57 per cent.

Council also approved providing $125,000 to the Town’s Water Meter Reserve Fund.

Some of the major capital projects scheduled to be completed in 2018 include:

  • Road reconstruction between 62nd Avenue, across Hwy. 97 to 115th Street and 62nd Avenue to Osoyoos Secondary School at a cost of $420,000. Both 62nd Avenue and 115th Street were constructed 40 years ago and drainage and paving upgrades will be completed.
  • Re-establishing the existing dog park into its former use as a ball diamond facility and creating a new dog park in the former BMX track area near Osoyoos Secondary School at a cost of $156,000. The dog park project is budgeted at $124,00 and the ball diamond project at $32,750.
  • $90,000 to build a new Southeast Meadowlark subdivision playground.
  • $786,000 to build a Hwy. 3 storm interceptor project. The Ministry of Transportation has agreed to pay 50 per cent of this project since most of the storm water collected after heavy rainfall events runs off Hwy. 3. The main purpose of this project is to divert storm water runoff from high intensity rainfall evernts into a storm sewer system at 85th Street, which will discharge runoff into Osoyoos Lake, therefore, minimizing property damage and increasing public safety.
  • Another $1,025 million will be spent to replace the storm sewer system under Hwy. 8=3 between 85th Street and 89th This project will also include the construction of sidewalk bump outs on Hwy. 3 at the intersections of 87th and 89th Street. A video inspection of this area last year revealed “total failure of this system … the existing system is not functional creating a situation where further infrastructure failure is possible (sink holes).” It’s hoped the ministry might be willing to pay $642,000 of the costs.
  • $50,000 to purchase a new scale at the Osoyoos landfill.
  • $150,000 for the design and installation of four new Welcome signs into the town.
  • $80,000 for the construction of a new public washroom at Legion Beach.
  • $552,000 to install a new liner and aeration replacement of cell #3 at the Town’s sewer lagoons.
  • $300,000 to replace the irrigation system at the Osoyoos Golf Course.
  • $150,000 to repair the water effluent intake at storage pond #2 at the sewer lagoons.

A total of $2,041,000 has been budgeted for sewer fund projects in 2018.

A total of $1,616,475 has been budgeted for water projects, including $980,000 for the third phase of a water-twinning project that will hook up 150 homes to the Town’s municipal water system.

Council is expected to officially endorse the 2018 budget some time in March or April.

The entire 206-page 2018 budget document is available for viewing on the Town of Osoyoos website at www.osoyoos.com.

KEITH LACEY

Osoyoos Times