No tax increases for Rainy River

By Ken Johnston
Editor

There will be no increase in taxes for the residents of Rainy River.
Town council held a special meeting Thursday evening to pass the tax levies for 2009 and they have not changed from 2008.
Finance Committee Chairman Brent Anderson said, “We balanced the budget and the rates are exactly what they were last year. The only way someone would have an increase or decrease is if their assessment changed.”
In the tax bylaw passed Thursday, the Town stated that the 2009 levy for municipal purposes is $451,447 and for education purposes $140,951 for a total of $592,397.
Here are the municipal tax rates for 2009:
•Residential/farm class 1.392184%
•Multi-residential class 1.733548%
•Commercial class 2.436323%
•Commercial vacant 1.705426%
•Industrial class 3.0132415%
•Industrial vacant class 2.036070%
•Pipeline class 4.231127%
•Farmlands class 0.348046%
Education tax rates for 2009:
•Residential/farm class 0.252000%
•Multi-residential class 0.252000%
•Commercial class 1.976921%
•Commercial vacant class 1.383845%
•Industrial class 1.998540%
•Industrial vacant class 1.299051%
•Pipeline class 2.25%
•Farmlands class 0.063000%
Tax bills will be sent out at the beginning of July and be due on July 31, 2009.
Council also passed a new User Fees Bylaw Thursday. Most of the changes in it are applicable to the cemetery but Town Clerk Veldron Vogan said that they will not take effect until the provincial government approves them. “They were mostly cost recovery,” said Vogan.
There were also some changes to the water and sewer rates. Vogan said they shifted capital charges from sewer to water and they raised metered water rates by 3% which she said will only affect two customers in town and the larger of the two will see only a $12 per month increase.
The shifts in the rates are as follows:
Old water rates were Water $45.50, water capital $3.00, Sewer $12.00 and Sewer capital $7.00. The new rates are Water $41.50, water capital $7.00, Sewer $16.00 and sewer capital $3.00. “The majority of customers will not see any changes in the total amount of their quarterly billing,” explained Vogan.
Other business
Council approved the hiring of summer students Regan Arnould, Matt Johnson, Kyle Kuzyk and Jaden Chorney for public works. Mathieu Godin was named the alternate.
Council also hired student Sydney McIntosh to work at Heritage Square/Railway Museum for the summer.
Council hired Kyle Blight, Dave Seguin, Pete Tiboni and Shane Gulbrandsen as Lagoon Project labourers.