By Justine Kelsie

Grande Prairie council votes to increase property tax: council meeting wrap-up

Apr 23, 2018 | 10:19 PM

A City Councillor spoke up against the two per cent property tax increase at a city council meeting Monday night. 

Chris Thiessen voted in favour of using funds from the city’s operational surplus of approximately $2.6-million to keep a tax increase of zero per cent. 

“That would have stopped (a tax increase) this year. We would have had a full year to look into our operational expenses and then decide through administration how we could potentially create zero per cent through our Priority Based Budgeting,” said Thiessen.

Back in November, the rate was going to go up 5.95 per cent which was further decreased to a potential 4.2 per cent. After reviewing during a Council Committee of the Whole meeting in the fall, a motion was made to implement a three per cent rate increase using reserve funds to reduce the rate to two per cent. Thiessen wanted to take it a step further to reduce the burden on residents. 

One reason Thiessen went to bat for the motion was to speak up for Councillor Wade Pilat who wasn’t able to attend the meeting on Monday. 

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“He was big and hard on achieving the zero per cent. He made a lot of promises and couldn’t be (there Monday). I said I would make that motion and I wouldn’t necessarily vote for it. As I started thinking about it, I thought it was something we could do that was a potential low-risk that would motivate our employees to budget at zero per cent.”

Mayor Bill Given, Councillor Eunice Friesen, Councillor Dylan Bressey, Councillor Clyde Blackburn, Councillor Yadvinder Minhas, and Councillor Kevin O’Toole voted against Thiessen’s motion while Councillor Jackie Clayton and Pilat were not present to vote. 

Council approved Bylaw C-1380, which confirms the two per cent tax increase presented during the fall of 2017, resulting in an extra $69 to an average home.

Given says taking the one-time funds to lower a property tax increase would push the same problem to a future date. 

“It does exactly what it is supposed to. It lowers the money we are taking from the tax base in the year that we do that. But it means for the future year, to collect the same amount of money, we have to go back to that place anyhow, unless something changes. We could make up that difference through reducing services, through efficiencies, or savings. At the meeting (Monday) we didn’t have those alternatives at hand, it was the intent of using one-time funding to reduce the current year’s property tax increase,” said Given. 

The Mayor says this way of lowering taxes should be used sparingly. 

Other council highlights: 
Alberta Summer Games
Organization representative Lindsey MacNeil and Lionel Robins presented an update to council members. The planners are still looking for many volunteers and plan to hold a 50-days-out BBQ at the end of May. The games committee will be using legacy funds for facility improvements like the beach volleyball court at South Bear Creek Park. 

Single-use Bag Ban 
Maurissa Hietland presented a need for the community to ban plastic bags at grocery stores and other retail establishments. She presented a template bylaw from the Municiaplity of Wood Buffalo that she recommended the City of Grande Prairie take into consideration as a template. The motion was made to have a committee hear the issue at a future date. 

Tri-Municipal Industrial Partnership
The Memorandum of Agreement was presented by City Manager Bob Nicolay as the MD of Greenview and County of Grande Prairie have already signed the agreement. Nicolay says they are currently working on the early phases of the area that is located in the MD of Greenview. He also says they are working on the corporate structure that has the possibility to change as the development goes ahead. 

Strategic Plan
After a conversation about word-smithing, the council passed a motion as presented for the Strategic Plan. The council members spent a little less than a week in Jasper working on the plan at the end of 2017.

Bus Trial for Arbour Hills 
Council passed a motion that will allow a bus to go to a from the new St. John Paul II Junior-Senior Catholic High School for May and June. The city will reassess the transportation option before the fall. The Grande Prairie Catholic School Board will be paying for the bus pilot-project.

Pinnacle Tax
Council approved a Special Recreational Services Tax Bylaw for an area in Pinnacle Ridge. The levy of $25 per household supports the operation of a fountain and water features in the neighbourhood.

Tenders
Council awarded a tender of $2,714,399.78 to Wapiti Gravel Suppliers, exclusive of GST. The city chose the company as the lowest qualified bidder meeting expectations for the 2018 Rehabilitation and Overlay Phase 2 project.

Reco Construction received the tender for $656,214.24 for the 2018 Catchbasin Manhole Repairs.

Knelsen Sand and Gravel Ltd. received the tender for the 2018 Road Rehabilitation and Overlay Phase 3 program for $2,201,577.50, exclusive of GST.