By William Crooks
Local Journalism Initiative
In a Dec. 18 special public meeting presided over by Mayor Simon Roy, the Ayer’s Cliff town council presented and approved the town’s budget for 2024. The key highlight of the budget was the anticipated tax increase for the year. For a home valued at $300,000, the tax hike is estimated at around 4 per cent. The hike is primarily due to fixed costs such as garbage, recycling, and compost fees, which have collectively risen by approximately $80 per residence. This increase is a direct pass-through cost, as the town does not profit from these services.
Budget overview
The total budget for the upcoming year is projected at $2.7 million, marking a $300,000 or 10 per cent increase from the previous year. This surge is attributed to additional investments in infrastructure and the creation of a contingency fund for future financial stability. The fund, amounting to 1 per cent of the budget or $25,000 annually, is designed to cushion the town against financial shocks, such as the end of grant subsidies for certain projects.
A substantial portion of the budget is allocated to various projects, including maintenance and infrastructure development. Notable expenses include the fire service costs, which have significantly risen due to the construction of new fire stations and the purchase of a fire truck. The budget also covers costs for waste management and firefighting services, which have both seen considerable increases this year.
The council has made strategic decisions to address future financial challenges and ensure sustainable growth. These include planning for long-term loan payments without grant support and increasing reserves to prevent abrupt tax hikes in the future. The town’s financial health is reportedly stable, with several successful initiatives and surplus generation ($150,000), indicating prudent financial management and planning.
Question period
Over 30 residents attended the meeting and were given the opportunity to question the budget presented.
One resident asked if property evaluations would be redone in the next three or four years. Re-evaluations will be done next year, responded Roy. “We’ve [had] about a 30 per cent increase in the first year of this term,” he said; many properties increased in value by “50, 60, even 80 per cent”. He thinks that the market will calm down during the course of the next year, but prices will certainly increase. They will adjust taxes accordingly.
Another resident asked why there was such a large increase (40+ per cent) in the budget for waste management. “It’s because we don’t do [it],” answered Roy. The work is contracted out, and only one company quoted a price for garbage, two for compost. The town must pay what the garbage company wants, he admitted. Roy noted that Sainte-Catherine-de-Hatley’s snowplowing costs recently tripled. “It’s crazy,” responded the resident. There are some great opportunities to get into the waste management business right now, Roy joked to chuckles from the audience. For a $300,000 home, the price has gone up about $80 per year, he reiterated.
A resident asked if waste management service for those near the end of the town’s routes would improve. Such residents would appreciate a text or a phone call when the trucks are late or plan on coming another day. Roy acknowledged the problem, but explained that the lower cost of the company compared to others that made offers made sticking with them the right decision for the town. The resident responded that those that receive worse service are paying the same as everyone else, which is not fair. Recycling has come late three times out of the last four weeks, said another woman. Roy urged them to call the town when this happens and speculated that putting waste management under the responsibility of the town in the future might be a good idea.
There will be a project to redo the skating rink using concrete, Roy said, responding to a question about why $600,000 was set aside for its renovation. With a concrete base, tennis or pickleball could be played on it in the summer. The change would also make it easier to put ice on the rink in the winter. The town is looking to finance the project primarily with voluntary donations and grants. If those do not come through, the project will not happen.
The beach is not under the responsibility of the town, Roy explained, when a citizen asked why it did not appear in the budget. The beach belongs to the Regie du Parc Massawippi (RPM). A portion of what the town pays towards the RPM goes towards the beach: $6,000. It is an excellent investment, he continued, because that money is mostly going towards the payment of the loan that was used to buy the beach. The beach will generate revenue in the future.
The meeting was adjourned at around 6:40 p.m.