After a day-long meeting, Belleville council has approved its 2024 operating budget.
It was passed as originally presented by Mayor Neil Ellis and staff with one important exception.
A one per cent special tax levy for this year and next was added to bring the city’s investment in the creation
of The Bridge integrated services hub in the former Banquet Centre building, up to $3 million from $1 million.
This means a homeowner in urban Belleville will see a tax increase of 5.78 per cent this year, or a little over $250 a year more in taxes for every $250,000 in property assessment.
Someone owning a home worth $500,000 in urban Belleville would see an increase of close to $500 a year or around $38 a month.
Percentage increases in the urban Cannifton, rural Cannifton, and rural tax areas will be 5.7 per cent, 4.91 per cent, and 4.16 per cent respectively.
The discussion of the day regarded the special tax levy to increase funding to make The Bridge hub a reality.
Mayor Ellis began by suggesting that instead of the one per cent special levy, a promised $1.3 million be used for the hub. Ellis told council that MPP Todd Smith promised that amount was coming to the city under the Building Faster Fund this Friday.
On another note, Ellis noted that Premier Doug Ford would be in Belleville Friday although he said he didn’t know exactly what his visit was about at this time.
After much discussion no one supported using the Building Faster cash as it really was meant to be spent on infrastructure for the creation of housing and wasn’t meant for medical and social services, things that the hub would be offering for the homeless and addicted.
After that amendment was turned down, council turned its attention to the original motion, the one per cent special tax levies for 2024 and 2025 to invest another $2 million in The Bridge.
Both councillors Paul Carr and Kathryn Brown said the city had to stop spending on health and other social services which are actually provincial government responsibilities. Carr said that because of the national media attention brought on by the recent spate of drug overdoses near the downtown the provincial government was starting to feel the heat and it was time it started fulfilling its responsibilities.
Brown said many residents had made it clear to her and Carr at a recent Thurlow town hall meeting that council should have a detailed business plan on The Bridge before considering any taxpayer dollars for the project.
In fact, there is a business plan, but it hasn’t been approved by staff and none of the city’s money will be released until all stipulations in a Memorandum of Understanding with the partners involved (John Howard Society, Bridge Street United Church, Grace Inn Shelter, Hastings Prince Edward Public Health, Belleville and Quinte West Community Health Care, Enrichment Centre for Mental Health and CMHA Hastings Prince Edward) are met.
Both Carr and Brown acknowledged the seriousness of the issue on the streets but said it was council’s duty to manage taxpayers’ money with due diligence and prudence.
It was noted that capital cost estimates for the project were increasing, to around $5 million.
However, the other members of council (Councillor Sean Kelly was absent due to previous commitments) believed the drug and homelessness problems were too serious to ignore and were certain to grow year after year.
Councillor Chris Malette said the problems had to be dealt with now and he is a believer in integrated services hubs.
“Our merchants, our downtown businesses, our emergency services are crying for help here. This place (The Bridge) is going to go a long way and I’m convinced of that after having heard from the experiences of other municipalities.”
Councillor Tyler Allsopp had this comment.
“I’m raising three little girls right now and they’re growing up in a different community than I grew up in and someday they are going to ask what I did to help on this issue and I’m not going to sit on my hands so I’ll be voting in favour today.”
Mayor Neil Ellis, who proposed the special levies for the hub, said doing nothing with no guarantees of help from the province would hurt the city badly.
“The risk of not doing it means no condos at the Intelligencer building. Why would they want to build condos, why would anybody buy them there? When I look next door to the Quinte Hotel (property) it’s the same. We can’t leave this here. We are losing economic money as the time ticks.”
In a recorded vote on the special levies, voting for were Mayor Neil Ellis, and councillors Garnet Thompson, Tyler Allsopp, Lisa-Anne Chatten, Barb Enright-Miller, and Chris Malette. Voting against were councillors Paul Carr and Kathryn Brown.
The 2024 budget saw increases in staffing other than those in the police and fire departments. About 10 new staff will be hired in public works and several other departments this year to deal with a growing workload.
PARKING FINES ADJUSTED
Parking fines will be going up in the City of Belleville.
As part of budget discussions Tuesday, council agreed with Mayor Neil Ellis that parking fines go from $8 for early payment and $12 for late payment to $15 for early payment and $20 for late payment.
Belleville’s fines were very low compared to other communities and there was a fear the costs to maintain parking lots would be higher than revenues next year with the shortfall having to be paid by the general taxpayer instead of the people using the city’s lots.
