The Town of Cochrane is proposing a 2.9 per cent property tax increase in its draft budget, presented to council Oct. 27.
Paige Milner, Cochrane’s senior manager of corporate services, made the presentation to council and said the increase was equivalent to an average of $4.84 per month, or $58 a year for each household.
The 2015 draft budget does maintain the current levels of service the town provides to residents and includes three major projects on Cochrane’s priority list: the aquatic/curling facility, the Connecting Cochrane transportation plan and a land strategy to repurpose vacant town-owned lots to encourage investment downtown.
The total for capital projects in the draft budget equal $68 million, with $45 of that for the new pool and curling project. The town will incur $27 million of new debt in 2015, again with $19 million being for the aquatic/curling facility and the remaining $8 million for a new RCMP station.
This will bring the town’s debt limit to 74 per cent of council’s approved maximum.
Milner reiterated that the debt limit was forecasted to return to around 35 per cent by 2023 once the large capital projects were paid off.
Total revenue predicted in the 2015 draft budget was $43.5 million, with expenditures equalling that mark.
Cochrane pays its workforce of 195 full time equivalents a total of $17.6 million in salary and benefits, and Tracey Radloff, senior manager of human resources and communication services, recommended a 3.2 per cent increase for town employees for the rise in cost of living.
A handful of service fees are expected to increase in 2015, including storm sewer rates going up $0.24 per month and waste and recycling collection $0.90 each month.
An open house will be held on the 2015 draft budge Nov. 19 from 6-8 p.m. at the RancheHouse and council deliberation will run from Nov. 28-29, with the budget expected to be approved Dec. 8.
The town is expected a year-end surplus of $478,000 as a result of growth exceeding budget expectations.
Planning and operations account for $300,000 of that surplus, while franchise fees were $320,000 higher than predicted.
There is a $140,000 shortfall expected in the town’s power budget, and the CookHouse, which closes after Oct. 30, is estimated to have a $58,000 deficit.
The town and Rocky View County have come to an agreement for fire services in the area, as the current Fire Services Agreement expires Dec. 31, 2014.
Cochrane’s fire services makes up 12 per cent of the town’s overall expenditures for the 2015 draft budget.
