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$1.25 GST included Serving the communities of Blyth and Brussels and northern Huron County Thursday, April 16, 2015
Volume 31 No. 15
FESTIVAL - Pg. 18
Artistic Director Gil
Garratt reveals cast
MEETING - Pg. 7
Ombudsman finds Central
Huron meeting was legal
Publications Mail Agreement No. 40050141 Return Undeliverable Items to North Huron Publishing Company Inc., P.O. Box 152, BRUSSELS, ON N0G 1H0
INSIDE
THIS WEEK:
Society disbands,
new club may form
Dancing the night away
On Saturday night the Brussels, Morris and Grey Community Centre was the place to be as
a Youth Unlimited fundraiser attempted to raise money for the Brussels Youth Centre. The
evening featured music, auctions, dinner and, of course, dancing. The fundraiser achieved its
goal as well, raising over $7,000 for the centre and its various programs. Now, the group is
looking ahead to hosting a bike rally and tour that will begin in Brussels. The ride is scheduled
for mid-June. (Vicky Bremner photo)
Huron East budget proposed with 11% increase
Huron East Treasurer Paula
Michiels has presented the
municipality’s first draft of the
budget with a proposed 11 per cent
municipal levy increase.
At Huron East Council’s April 7
meeting, Michiels told councillors
that when the proposed municipal
tax increase of 11 per cent is
grouped with the established 2.3 per
cent increase at the Huron County
level and the one per cent increase in
the school board levy, Huron East
residents could be facing an overall
tax increase of 5.4 per cent.
Based on the average Huron East
residential assessment, which in
2015 is $166,779, a 5.4 per cent tax
levy increase will translate to an
annual increase of between $138 and
$215, depending on the ward. This
comes in a year where local
assessment jumped drastically – the
average Huron East assessment last
year was nearly $15,000 lower than
it is this year at $153,393.
While the figures are still
preliminary, Seaforth would see the
highest increase of $215 on an
average household assessment,
followed by Brussels at $211,
Tuckersmith at $146, Grey at $141
and McKillop at $138.
Michiels also reminded council
that the 2014 carry-forward
surplus/deficit has yet to be
completed. The budget process has
been complicated by late-arriving
department budgets, she said, and a
personal leave she was forced to take
earlier this year.
One member of council, Deputy-
Mayor Joe Steffler, however, felt the
budget was sound and put forward a
motion to pass it as presented at
council’s April 21 meeting.
Few councillors could disagree
with Steffler, with Councillor David
Blaney admitting that Michiels’ first
draft of the budget was “tight” and
that he saw very little he could
consider trimming from it.
This budget comes after the
municipality received word that it
would lose another $454,000 in
Ontario Municipal Partnership Fund
(OMPF) money and would face a
7.3 per cent increase, representing an
increase of $82,652, in policing
costs.
On the other side, however, Huron
East received $113,350 in Ontario
Community Infrastructure Funding,
as well as an additional $177,425
from the same fund to specifically be
used for the replacement of two
bridge structures within the
municipality.
Michiels told councillors that she
and the rest of the staff had to cut $1
million from the budget just to trim
it down to an 11 per cent municipal
tax increase.
COMMUNITY CENTRES
The one aspect of the proposed
budget that stuck out to several
councillors, however, was its various
community centre budgets.
While the Brussels, Morris and
Grey Community Centre finished
2014 on budget and the Vanastra
Recreation Centre finished the year
with a deficit of just over $4,000,
which is related to roof repairs,
Michiels said she found the budget
trend at the Seaforth and District
Community Centre troubling.
The centre ended 2014 with a
deficit of just under $21,000. This is
Central Huron Council is ready to
present its 2015 budget to residents
complete with a 2.34 per cent
increase to the municipal tax rate.
Central Huron’s proposed 2.34 per
cent municipal increase, when
grouped with the Huron County and
school board budgets, will result in a
0.82 per cent decrease in the overall
taxation rate in Central Huron. With
assessment up nearly across the
board, however, taxes paid are likely
to still rise.
Director of Finance Terri Rau
presented the budget to council at a
special budget meeting held on April
7 in Clinton.
In her report to council, she stated
that within the 2.34 per cent
municipal increase is an additional
transfer of $50,000 to reserves for
the municipal office roof repairs to
accelerate the target of $25,000 and
potentially complete the project one
year earlier.
Council finalized its decision at its
April 13 committee of the whole
meeting to go ahead with this
option, which was one of four. The
proposed budget will now be
presented to the public at the April
20 meeting.
The budget will contain
$2,410,504 in capital requirements,
a $933,746 transfer to reserves and a
levy requirement of $5,786,371 (an
increase of 7.97 per cent).
The tax rate means that Central
Huron residents will pay $624.66 of
taxes per $100,000 of assessment.
The budget includes several
obligatory cash requirements such as
principal debt payments for the
Central Huron Community
Complex, $85,662; the Regional
Equine and Agricultural Centre of
Huron (REACH) 25-year, $99,056;
the REACH five-year, $56,653 and
two equipment payments that add up
to just over $75,000.
There are also long-term debt
interest payments included in the
operating budget for the Central
Huron Community Complex,
$41,480; the REACH 25-year,
$152,787; the REACH five-year,
$1,923 and just over $1,200 for three
different equipment obligations.
The budget will be formally
presented to the public at council’s
April 20 meeting at 7 p.m.
During the Blyth Horticultural
Society’s annual general meeting, it
was decided the organization would
disband and seek a new life as a
gardening club or similar
organization.
Chair Anne Elliott explained to
The Citizen that the meeting, which
was held at the Queens Bakery last
week, marked the 93rd year the
organization has been in operation,
starting in 1922.
A disbandment motion was tabled
and passed according to Elliott.
“It was the belief of those in
attendance that [the Horticultural
Society should dissolve] and assist
in the forming of a new
organization,” she said.
Elliott explained the proposed new
group could work under the
umbrella of the municipality as
volunteers and the members of the
Horticultural Society talked about
creating one organization that would
be able to maintain the gardens,
green spaces and cemeteries.
The society’s written and financial
records are to be kept for historical
purposes, Elliott said.
The organization’s remaining
funds, which are approximately
$5,000, will be split between
maintaining the organization’s
current gardens and green spaces
through the proposed club and a
project for Horticultural Park which
has yet to be named according to
Elliott. The majority of the funds
will go to the project which Elliott
said the group hopes will return the
park to its former grandeur.
While society members were sad
to see the society disband, Elliott
said there was a discussion of a
positive nature around the potential
creation of the new organization and
members were encouraged by the
idea.
“We want to find a different way
to do the same things,” she said.
During a previous meeting with
North Huron Township Staff, Elliott
had explained the Horticultural
Society is maintained through the
Ontario Ministry of Food,
Agriculture and Rural Affairs
(OMAFRA). The club receives,
from the ministry, funds based on
their membership, provided it has its
books audited and submits proper
documentation.
During the meeting, Elliott
explained auditing the society’s
books and providing the
documentation took up a significant
amount of time, so much so that,
despite the financial gain, the
society had not, for the past several
years, applied for the grant.
The form the new society will take
will be discussed on May 14 at a
special meeting focused on Blyth’s
gardens and green spaces at the
Emergency Services Training Centre
(ESTC) and will start at 7 p.m.
The Citizen
Celebrating 30 Years
1985~2015
Tax rate to decrease in Central Huron
By Shawn Loughlin
The Citizen
Continued on page 17