Budget 2022 at a Glance

Budget 2022 at a Glance

Driving economic growth, significant investments in capital projects, and freeze on residential and commercial mil; rate highlight Budget 2022

The Town of Conception Bay South today announced its balanced budget of $37.2 million for 2022, noting it’s one of the most aggressive budgets in recent history for capital projects and is focused on driving economic growth for the town.

“We are the second largest community in this province and we continue to see impressive growth both commercially and residentially. Budget 2022 is about ensuring this growth continues, and is proven through our significant investment of approximately $20 million for capital projects and almost $1 million for the Department of Economic Development,” said Deputy Mayor Andrea Gosse.

The Town continues to position itself as an ideal place to live and invest by holding the line on residential and commercial mil rates for 2022. Furthermore, the Town will waive all new home construction permit fees, as well as all residential permit fees for extensions, decks, fences, general repairs and accessory buildings.

“This Council was elected with a strong mandate to pursue economic development, and we are working hard on that. Right now, only 8% of our town revenue is generated from business tax. As a community uniquely positioned to advance large-scale industries, we will retain external expertise to help market Conception Bay South for strategic investment. Not only will this create jobs and help provide goods and services essential to a thriving community, but it will grow our tax base, offering further financial protection to our residents,” said Deputy Mayor Gosse.

During budget deliberations, Council had to address a budgetary shortfall of more than $1.5 million with no funding from the federal government to offset the impacts of Covid-19 on the Town, which was the case for Budget 2021. As a result, Council was faced with the difficult task of finding ways to reduce spending or risk passing this financial burden on to taxpayers.

To battle this significant shortfall, Council was successful in reallocating resources to achieve expenditure reductions in most departments. The Town’s debt management strategy also resulted in debt servicing costs being reduced by an impressive $320,000 in 2022, which helped ease the pressure of taxation rates and fee structures.

Deputy Mayor Gosse noted that all fees and taxes remain frozen for Budget 2022, with the exception of the water and sewer fee, which will be increased by $25 per household and $5 per student within the school district.

“The Town’s cost to provide water from the St. John’s Regional Water Authority has increased by 16% since 2016. As the Town continues to grow, more services are connected each year, all of which require regular inspection, maintenance and servicing. As a result, The Town’s cost to provide this service has increased by $698,000 in just the past six years. Because of economic challenges associated with Covid-19, subsidizing this service to such a great extent is no longer possible without impacting our core services,” said Deputy Mayor Gosse.

Budget 2022 has many great highlights for the community and focuses on driving economic growth, significantly investing in capital projects, and freezing residential and commercial mil rates to help reduce financial burdens.

Highlights of Budget 2022 include:

  • No increase to residential and commercial mill rates;
  • Fifth consecutive year that the Town has reduced spending;
  • Hold-the-line on all rates and fees, with the exception of the water and sewer fee which has increased by $25 per household and $5 per student within the school district;
  • $5.7 million investment in road work:
    • $425,000 for new sidewalks;
    • $2.5 million for Minerals Road upgrades – the last of the major, town-owned roads to be upgraded that connects Peacekeepers Way to Route 60; contingent upon the completion of Ocean Choice International’s wharf and infill project;
    • $2.7 million for street paving;
  • $90,000 traffic calming budget, on par with the highest ever budgeted for this service;
  • Town to reduce speed limits to 30km/hr in various school areas;
  • $1.7 million investment into snow and ice control program to continue 24/7 services during the snow season;
  • $4.2 million in Fire Protective Services, increase of $120,000 over 2021 and an unprecedented expenditure for the Town;
  • Almost $1 million investment in economic development to retain and attract new business; an increase of $135,000 over last year’s budget;
  • $6.9 investment in water and sewer services, which includes new infrastructure and maintenance;
  • $3 million investment in the library resource centre in Remembrance Square;
  • $2.5 million investment in the downtown community park;
  • Third consecutive year that the Town will waive all new home construction permit fees, as well as all residential permit fees for extensions, decks, fences, general repairs and accessory buildings;
  • Subject to the approval of cost-shared funding, the Town will allocate $50,000 to better understand and promote new opportunities in the renewable energy sector;
  • Town’s debt servicing costs to be reduced by $320,000 in 2022;
  • Town to undergo a public engagement process for a new community centre, have options established for site selection;
  • Town to begin planning for its 50th Anniversary Celebrations, which will take place in 2023.

Watch the budget speech by tuning in to the Town’s YouTube channel.

For further details, please visit Budget.

The Town thanks all residents who provided their important feedback and input for Budget 2022.

Budget 2022 Public Engagement - Online Survey Results
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