Tecumseh's Mayor hopes councillors can bring a 4.4 per cent increase in the town's draft budget down, but Gary McNamara said there's no way to avoid a greater increase than ratepayers are accustomed.
McNamara hopes residents will be patient with councillors, not just in Tecumseh but in municipalities everywhere.
"Of all the years that I've been in municipal politics, this is probably the toughest one I've ever had to face," said the man who faced budgets during the 2008 financial meltdown and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Tecumseh Town Hall, April 8, 2021. Photo by Mark Brown/WindsorNewsToday.ca
When the staff at Tecumseh Town Hall first submitted their department budgets, the town was looking at a 7 per cent increase, a stunning jump for ratepayers used to coughing up two or three per cent more each year.
A little more work has gone into the 2023 spending plan, but even now, it calls for a 4.4 per cent increase, a consolidated levy increase of 4 per cent. That's another $142 annually on a property assessed at $250,000.
McNamara hopes the final budget increase for the town will be below 4 per cent.
"I have some confidence that I can get it below that 4 per cent area, but there will be increases. No doubt," he admitted. "We're asking people to be patient with us. We'll do everything to soften it as much as we can."
What's driving up the budget is continued supply chain disruptions from the COVID-19 pandemic, inflation, a jump in staff benefits, and higher insurance costs. Most are fixed expenses. In past years, councils have trimmed capital costs. However, McNamara said there's less wiggle room even on that leger.
He warned cutting capital projects could undo years of work to improve roads and sewers. With the new electric vehicle battery plant coming online in a few short years, the town is pressed to ensure the infrastructure exists to accommodate it. In the meantime, construction costs are 20, even 30 per cent higher than before the pandemic.
"Everybody's feeling the crunch," said McNamara. "This is across the country. I am hearing my colleagues at the Association of Municipalities of Ontario, and the rest of them, are extremely nervous in terms of what's coming down the pipe for 2023."
