Published January 18, 2024

By Trevor Greenway

Residents in Low are facing a 5.61 per cent tax increase – a welcome hike compared to last year, in which taxes went up 20 per cent for the median homeowner.

Low councillors along with Mayor Carole Robert passed a $3.6 million budget in 2024, up from the $3.4 million budget in 2023, with the biggest increase coming in public works, which rose from just over $1 million in 2023 to $1.184 million this year.

Mayor Robert said that the public works budget is mostly eaten up by road maintenance, as the municipality has an extensive network of roads that the municipality is constantly working to stay on top of.

She told the Low Down that she was happy with the 2024 budget, touting that the increase this year for the median homeowner is just $42 on a home worth $176,900 – another welcome jump after property values increased by 40 per cent last year.

“So, really, the increase for the median homeowner is 42 bucks, but it will be more for some and less for others,” said Robert, scrolling through finance documents. She even stopped and mentioned her own property and how she will be paying a $77 increase.

“But I don’t mind. Last year was the worst because we got hit hard with the property assessments,” she said.

Robert and councillors increased the mill rate this year to $0.59434 per $100 of property evaluation. The mill rate is the municipal tax rate, which is based on the total value of property within a municipality’s jurisdiction to provide the necessary tax revenue to cover projected expenses.

Police services to the Sûreté du Québec increased by just over five per cent, while environment went up nearly eight per cent. Low’s contribution to the MRC Vallée-de-la-Gatineau rose by nearly 11 per cent, to $331,246.

One thing Robert said she was happy to report was that garbage fees came down this year, from $556 in 2023 to $525.20 per household in 2024. This was another item praised by residents, as some faced massive garbage hikes last year, including Brennan’s Hill owner Tara Shippers who saw a 400 per cent increase.

Robert and other councillors didn’t know how much debt Low has accumulated – or how much of this year’s budget will go to paying down the debt, and the interim director-general couldn’t find the information before press time.

Robert told the Low Down that the municipality is looking to add infrastructure for seniors and has big plans to build a new town hall and new fire station, but those are bigger, wish-list type projects she said she’d like to see realized.

“The fire station we have has been there since 1962,” said Robert. “Our fire department is growing out of it, and it just doesn’t make sense to add on to an older building.”

Projects on the books for this year include a new park at 400 Hwy 105 for kids and a new gazebo structure near the football fields so seniors can stay in the shade while enjoying local high school sports events.

“You know, things are starting to move,” said Robert. “And we’re happy to see things like that because it’s for the citizens and for kids. The gazebo in the back was important for me because I always thought that our seniors don’t go out to watch a game or whatever because of the sun. But just having this gazebo gives them a shady area to sit while they enjoy a football or softball game.”

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