Turner Valley taxpayers digging deep into their pockets this year should soon notice a payoff in improved services, say Town officials.
Turner Valley Town council approved an operating budget of $7,128,107 during its regular council meeting on March 2, marking a 5.2 per cent increase over last year that will reflect a boost in services and wages, according to Barry Williamson, the Town’s chief administrative officer.
The average taxpayer with a house originally assessed at $325,000 can expect an increase in assessed value of $9,000 and about $13 more a month in taxes for the municipal tax portion. The capital tax, which administration expects to present to council later this month, as well as the foothills foundation and education requisition, have not yet been determined.
“We wanted to put money into service delivery and we needed to adjust our salaries and wages,” Williamson said. “They haven’t been adjusted in a number of years and it’s high time we recognize that and give them a competitive adjustment to other municipalities.”
Williamson said the town’s operating expenses are lagging compared to other like-size communities.
“Our expenses need to get more in line with what our service delivery looks like,” he said. “We should be getting out there and doing a lot more than we are currently doing.”
With the Town having purchased new equipment including a grader and snow blower late last year, it can now offer its own snow removal services and smooth pothole-ridden black lanes, Williamson said.
It will also take over maintaining the outdoor rink, which was previously operated by volunteers, he said.
“They will see (Town workers) getting around to doing the road work quicker, they should see the back lane issues resolved quicker,” he said. “We want to step up and not only define our service delivery, but resource the service delivery so we have the right equipment and the right complement of people.”
To help improve services, the Town increased its staffing in some departments. It hired a new operator for the water treatment system, bringing the number of employees from two people to three.
“It’s grown over the years with the testing and monitoring and the demand on the system… and with Black Diamond losing their system and us supplying two towns,” he said.
The Town also increased its two part-time positions in the parks and recreation department to full time.
In addition to boosting staff, Williamson said wages increased for the first time in a number of years for some departments, including the Turner Valley fire department.
Taxpayers won’t only face an increase in the operating budget, but also their utility costs. Garbage will increase by $3 every two months and recycling by $1.
“We pass that straight through to the rates,” Williamson said, adding many municipalities do total cost recovery of their utilities.
Coun. Dona Fluter said the increase in utilities reflects the rising costs to provide those services.
“When they get their water bill, sewer bill and garbage bill every other months the true cost of providing that service is accounted for,” she said. “People can understand why water conservation is important for them as well as our municipality and province going into the future. It’s beneficial for the residents to know these things.”
Fluter said she is happy with this year’s operating budget and supports the Town’s direction to improve services to its residents.
“One thing we always recognized is we needed to make sure that we have the tools and equipment to do the job and that we have the appropriate staffing to do the job,” she said. “We are lagging a little bit behind and we are bringing forward our daily operations effectively and efficiently.”
With much of the Town’s focus on disaster recovery since the 2013 flood, Fluter said it can soon return to other priorities like downtown revitalization.
“We had a number of projects that we were going to be doing,” she said. “They sat on the back burner and we are anxious to get back to them.”
Despite the setbacks, Fluter feels the Town is moving forward with new businesses starting up and more people moving to Turner Valley.
“Things are starting to happen again for our community,” she said. “I see this year as the beginning of really pushing forward again successfully. It tells the population we are open for business and we are healthy.”
Fluter said the Town is also focusing on putting money into reserves.
“It’s ensuring we have the money for the future for infrastructure and for equipment replacements,” she said.
