Tax hike remains at 3.6%

City council leaves provisional budget unchanged, meaning average homeowner will pay $70 more in municipal taxes

An average Kelowna homeowner will pay $2,009 in municipal taxes next year following city council’s approval of a 3.6 per cent tax hike for 2018.

Five hours of deliberations at City Hall on Thursday produced no change in the provisional budget that had been presented by managers.

Council members said it was a lean budget that, while providing for more police and firefighters, had no fat to trim.

“It would be really easy to cut, but then I couldn’t look at kids and tell them this is going to be an awesome place for them to grow up,” Mayor Colin Basran said.

On Wednesday, The Daily Courier sent an email to all nine council members asking what items, if any, they would advocate dropping from the budget. Six did not respond.

Basran said the questionnaire was “disrespectful” toward staff who had worked hard to prepare the budget.

“It’s not like they just throw things in that they think are frivolous,” he said.

“There are very few things to cut from what’s presented to us,” agreed Coun. Brad Sieben.

Big cost drivers for the 2018 budget are the addition of 12 firefighters, a fifth fire engine, wage increases for city staff and four more members for the Kelowna RCMP.

“This to me will be a safety budget, with more cops and firefighters,” Coun. Mohini Singh said.

Coun. Luke Stack said he thought the city had struck the right balance between providing valuable programs and services and keeping the tax increase as low as possible.

“I wish it was a little less in the increase, but I’m not embarrassed about it,” said Stack, who added he didn’t often receive requests from residents for lower taxes.

Anyone who advocates for a tax increase of less than two per cent is “dreaming,” Coun. Charlie Hodge said, since that level of additional funding would take the city “backwards.”

“If you want to live in a quality community, you got to pay for it,” Hodge said.

During Thursday’s deliberations, councillors made as many attempts to increase the municipal tax hike as to reduce it.

For example, there were discussions about hiring additional staff at the Kelowna Community Theatre, proceeding with $800,000 worth of exterior renovations at the downtown fire hall and fasttracking improvements to Rutland’s Centennial Park.

None of these initiatives had been rated as a priority by city managers.

A recent survey of residents’ views on various municipal issues found 84 per cent of people believe they get good value for their tax dollars, city manager Ron Mattiussi said.

Kelowna’s municipal taxes are the fifth lowest of the 16 B.C. cities with a population of more than 75,000, Basran said.

And he said the average annual tax increase approved by the current council, elected in 2014 and facing re-election next fall, was 3.4 per cent, below that of the previous council.

Although next year’s tax rate will rise 3.6 per cent, the city’s total tax haul will actually climb seven per cent, to $135 million, with the difference made up by new revenue collected from the owners of newly built properties.

By the city’s calculations, the owner of a typical Kelowna home worth $640,000 will pay $70 more in municipal tax next year, for the estimated total of $2,009.

This number, however, is derived after first subtracting the provincial homeowner grant and does not include other taxes levied by the school board, regional district, hos-