High River residents are going to see a pretty stiff increase in their Municipal taxes in 2019.

Council approved both their operating and capital budgets for the year at their meeting Monday, January 28, with a residential tax increase of 4.6 per cent, which works out to on average, $11.64 per month or $139.68 a year.

Commercial rates are on the rise too, with the average commercial tax rate going up $51.77 a month, or $621.24 a year.

The operating budget tops the scales at $32.9 million, with the capital budget at $11.7 million.

The Town says over the next 10 years they expect to spend close to $96 million on capital projects like a new aquatics centre, fire hall, broadband Internet and waste water treatment plant among others.

In a release, Mayor Craig Snodgrass says, “It’s been a particularly challenging discussion this year, we need to upgrade our aquatics facility and fire hall as well as build a new waste water treatment plant. And, to pay for all of this aging infrastructure, we needed to figure out how to save more money and put it into our reserves for the future.”

“It’s what we have to do to ensure High River continues to be a desirable place for our future generations to live a high quality and fulfilling life,” says Snodgrass.

“This year, our budget reflects how we are setting the organization and community up for the next 10, 20, even 30 years,” says Tom Maier, Town Manager. “We don't want a future Council to have to dive deep into their pockets because we didn't think ahead or plan for it like we are today.”

 

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