The average Port Alberni homeowner will see an increase of less than 10 percent in property taxes this year.
Port Alberni city council officially adopted its 2024-2028 financial plan on Monday, April 8. The province requires adoption of the financial plan and associated bylaws before May 15. The final draft of the budget proposes a 9.29 percent tax increase for the average single-family home in 2024, or approximately $215.04 on a home worth $519,000.
City staff introduced the budget earlier this year with a proposed 16.86 percent tax increase, but council managed to bring this down using a combination of reserve and grant funding. The city also received more than $134,000 in bylaw ticket fees from property owner Randy Brown, which was used to reduce spending in the bylaw department.
READ MORE: Port Alberni tries to trim budget for 2024
Acting mayor Debbie Haggard thanked finance manager Andrew McGifford and the rest of city staff for their work on the budget this year.
“I know it’s a tremendous amount of pressure to come up with a viable budget,” she said.
The city’s tax rate bylaw has not been adopted yet, but most of the city’s tax revenue is expected to come from the residential class (60 percent), while major industry taxes fall around 18.65 percent and light industry taxes are around 3.18 percent.
“There’s been a shift over time, but we have seen some growth in light industry,” explained McGifford.
Coun. Todd Patola wanted to have a more in-depth discussion about the tax rates for heavy and light industry. This discussion was deferred to a future meeting of council.