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Flin Flon mill rate, taxes up for 2019 to offset service levy drop

Water/sewer project, campground and Whitney Forum fixes funded
taxes

Flin Flonners will be paying higher property taxes this year, according to the 2019 city budget.

The budget was released to the public on May 21 before the regularly scheduled city council meeting. Booklets outlining this year’s financial plan were also made available to the public.

Mill rates have increased from last year, with a municipal mill rate of 27.15 for residential properties and a total school mill rate of 21.46, forming an overall residential mill rate of 48.61. This is an increase of more than five mills from last year and a 12.86 per cent increase in total.

Commercial mill rates also increased by more than five mills to 58.38, up from 52.84 last year and a 10.48 per cent hike.

The reason for the increase is due in part to the city’s changes to funding for emergency services, including RCMP. Due to a switch from a federally based plan to a provincial one, the city’s overall spending on RCMP is slated to decrease by a sizable amount this year, going from $698 per parcel of land to $395.27. This year, the city is slated to spend $625,000 on policing-afar cry from the $1,392,000 allocated in last year’s budget.

“The increase in the mill rate is offsetting the decrease in special service levy. That’s something that’s important,” said Glenna Daschuk, chief administrative officer for the city of Flin Flon.

“People do need to understand that the special service levy didn’t stay the same and we just took another five mills on taxes. We had to do the five mills on the taxes to offset the decrease in special service levy.”

A three per cent increase in both revenue and spending is listed in this year’s budget.

In total, the city forecasts $13.7 million in total revenue and total expenditure, about $400,000 higher than last year’s budget. Another aspect of the increase is a negotiated two per cent increase in labour payment by the city.

Payments in the form of grants-in-lieu, made up of contributions from the provincial government and from Hudbay, have also grown, as well as money from the education support levy.

“We’re experiencing increases from every line item. The provincial grants are up. The provincial grant-in-lieu is up. The Hudbay grant-in-lieu is up. The education support levy for the province is up. School taxes are up,” said Daschuk.

In order to hit the forecasted mark, increases are anticipated in almost all methods of revenue collection. Net municipal tax revenue and net revenue from grants-in-lieu will increase by $212,771 from last year’s budget.

 

Capital spending

In terms of capital spending, the city’s main project for 2019 is listed as “utility six critical assets” –a major upcoming renovation project for the city’s water and sewer infrastructure, including improvements to the city’s water tower, lift station, reservoir, two heating plants and other areas.

The estimated total cost of the project for 2019 is listed as $2.96 million, with $976,800 borne by the general fund. The overall cost by completion of the project is estimated at over $6 million, according to the city’s five-year capital expenditures forecast, also released with the budget. A federal and provincial shared grant will provide $2.64 million to cover expenses.

Another project will see $330,000 devoted to upgrading the Whitney Forum boiler system.

“Those are the major upgrades that are required in order to do the upgrade to the boilers. Major upgrades are our replacements of large pumps and equipment that is running the boiler,” said Daschuk. “The total project combined is we’re putting a new boiler in at $330,000. The long-term benefit is that it’s going to be more reliable and more effective to run, but it’s also going to eliminate some of some of the tickets that our employees require. It was an old boiler that required all kinds of refrigeration and power engineer certificates and they will no longer be required to run that.”

The city will also spend an estimated $125,000 on upgrading the tourist park and Flinty’s Campground, with hopes of finishing work by this year’s Blueberry Jam Musical Gathering.

“That has to do with the expansion of the campground, electrification and installation of new sewer and water going in there. There’s a number of different things involved in that and it’s just going to make our campground that much more wonderful than it already is,” Daschuk said.

Also listed in the five year capital plan is a funding schedule for the Flin Flon Aqua Centre, detailing an estimated $15,275,000 in spending between 2020 and 2023. The project has been listed in previous city budgets, typically a year or two away from the present year, but Daschuk said work on the Aqua Centre could be as close to happening as ever before.

“It’s been in the five year plan for 10 years. Now, if you go back about 10 years, the pool has been there, but it’s always kind of sitting on that fifth year out. And we always keep hoping that, ‘Well, next year is the year we’re going to start,’ and we haven’t been able to get there because of other things that we’ve dealt with, other different funding agencies or funding that we apply for that gets denied,” she explained, stating that a number of city debentures and payments, including payments on the city’s wastewater treatment plan, come off the books between now and the possible opening date of a new, refurbished Aqua Centre.

“This year is the first year that it’s actually looking like it could become a reality to us. It’s always kind of been more of a wish, a dream, but this year, it’s less so. This year, it’s kind of like, ‘You know what, this could be possible. If we’re very careful, this could be possible,’” said Daschuk.

 

City of Flin Flon capital spending, 2019

Utility six critical assets $2,960,000

Ball diamonds $50,000

Community hall $15,000

Aqua Centre $20,000

Garage and workshop $25,000

Parks and playgrounds $30,000

Beautification $55,000

Tourist park upgrades $125,000

Steventon Park $50,000

Whitney Forum major upgrades/boiler $330,000

City Hall $55,000

Bus garage $300,000

Truck $35,000

Parks mower $35,000

Loader $30,000

Accessibility $50,000

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