Wilmot council working to bring down proposed 50 per cent property tax hike

Councillors in Wilmot are trying to whittle down what was once a proposed property tax hike of more than 50 per cent.

Councillors in Wilmot have made some progress in their efforts to cut back the proposed 50.87 per cent increase on the township’s portion of the tax bill.

They reviewed the draft 2025 budget in a six-hour meeting on Thursday.

By the end of the night, the proposed increase was around 47 per cent.

“Thank you, council, for today,” said Mayor Natasha Salonen. “Although we didn’t get an approved budget, we’re definitely getting somewhere.”

Council said they received “significant” feedback from residents and wanted to give township staff “direction on which items should be prioritized in the budget, and which should be removed or deferred.”

New staff positions were one of the items removed, bringing down the operating portion of the draft budget from 14 per cent to 10.31 per cent.

The township has, historically, had one of the lowest tax rates in the area.

But they said years of smaller increases and a failure to set aside money for capital projects has put the township in difficult position.

“Some of those bills are now coming due,” explained Greg Clark, Wilmot’s director of corporate services, chief financial officer and acting CAO.

A number of renovations and repairs were also discussed at Thursday’s meeting, including some much-needed upgrades for the fire station. The fire chief also explained that it was wasn’t easy to borrow aerial trucks when needed during an emergency.

Council asked to defer discussion on that item so staff could gather more information on the needs of the station. That report is expected to be completed by the next budget meeting on Jan. 27.

At that time, councillors will also take a closer look at capital funding. They said the proposed 36.87 per cent increase represents the largest portion of the draft budget.