Ahead of budget deliberations next week, the Town of LaSalle is holding a public meeting to explain its spending plan for 2023.
Residents are invited to a Budget Open House at the Vollmer Centre on Thursday, starting at 6 p.m.
Town councillors will go over the $43.1-million draft budget on February 8 and 9 in Council Chambers at the LaSalle Civic Centre. Deliberations will continue on February 10 only if necessary.
This year, deliberations are open to the public, but residents can watch the meetings on the town's YouTube Channel.
The document is on the town's website.
The public has until noon on Friday to submit comments.
Currently, the budget calls for a $2.9-million increase in spending or another 5.25 per cent on the municipal property tax bill. That may sound like a sizeable jump, but town officials point out it is below inflation, which was 6.3 per cent in December.
"Although the rate of inflation has significantly increased in 2022, the town is still on pace to achieve its strategic goals with a responsible tax rate increase below inflation," said Director of Finance/Treasurer Dale Langlois. "Our goal is to recognize the current inflationary environment while maintaining current levels of service and continuing to fund the town's strategic goals."
Towns across Essex County, and the country, have struggled with higher costs. Typically, the Municipal Property Assessment covers much of those increases. However, the province paused those updates during the pandemic. As a result, nearly all properties in LaSalle and beyond continue to have an identical assessment value this year as they did in 2016.
The budget includes $571,000 for the LaSalle Police Service, which hopes to hire two new constables. Another $1.3-million will cover costs associated with growth and service level changes. That includes money to develop master plans, boost capital reserves, and investments in information technology and infrastructure. Meanwhile, $2.8-million will cover inflationary costs.