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FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2012
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City faces $3.6 million deficit KRISTEN DOUGLAS CAMPBELL RIVER MIRROR
The city is forecasting a $3.6 million budget shortfall for 2012, according to preliminary fig-
ures. That’s up substantially from the last estimated budget deficit of $550,000 back in December. The picture looks bleaker now because of a change in the prop-
erty assessment value of the defunct Catalyst mill site. The BC Assessment Authority announced early last month that Catalyst no longer meets the requirements of a major industrial property, and
has been reclassified as business/ other, which means a significant reduction in Catalyst’s property taxes. That decision results in a loss of $1.8 million in tax revenue for
2012. Included in the deficit is a $1.1 million tax shortfall carried over from 2011, plus a $1.3 million increase in costs related to contract commitments and inflationary increases, said Laura Ciarniello, the city’s general manager of corporate services. If the city were to maintain the current level of services it provides to citizens, the tax rate would have to increase by 24 per cent in order to make up the $3.6 million. The loss of $1.8 million from Catalyst alone, equates to a 12 per cent residential tax increase. To put that into perspective, Ciarniello said a one per cent residential tax increase would bring in $150,000 in revenue for the city. That one per cent increase would mean roughly $12 more per year in property taxes for the average homeowner. The city’s operating budget is approximately $37 million which Continued on A3
WebPoll We asked: Does Emcon do a good job of removing snow and ice from highways? You said: Yes – 8 votes (16%) No – 40 votes (83%) LUCAS CHICKITE/SPECIAL TO THE MIRROR
Early morning fire Firefighters battle a blaze in a vacant house in Cape Mudge that burned Tuesday morning. No one was hurt in the blaze and volunteer firefighters spent approximately four hours dousing the flames.
Today’s question: Would you accept service cuts over a tax increase? Vote at campbellrivermirror.com
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