Espanola council has passed the 2025 budget for the municipality for $17,397,289.
The overall tax increase is 4.99%, which works out to $139.30 in additional taxes for a property appraised at $154,000, an average increase of $11.60 per month.
Some of the capital projects on the books include $3.7 million for the ice-plant retrofit at the recreation centre, water and sewer plant upgrades, and the ground work for the reconstruction of the public works shop.
CAO Clerk Joe Burke explained further.
The rec complex project is contingent on a grant for 2,814,553 applied for to the Green and Inclusive Community Buildings Program, our share of the 3.7 would be $938,000 which we already have saved up in the recreation reserve.
This project would not likely take place in 2025 but in 2026.
As for the Public Works Garage, Pre-Design as well as schematic and design development would take place in 2025 at an estimated cost of $167,500 plus tax.
Pre-design tasks include surveying, geotechnical investigation and a design report that includes a class C cost estimate.
Developing the design including schematics and a more fulsome report including a class B estimate to follow (same year).
The detailed design could then be undertaken in 2026 and the project would be considered “shelf-ready” for construction in 2027 should funds become available.
The information needed regarding the building which will be established in the pre-design work being undertaken this year will give us a true sense of where things are at with the building since an assessment conducted in 2018 reported a long list of issues.
The report specific to that item can be viewed at: https://pub-espanola.escribemeetings.com/filestream.ashx?DocumentId=11779.
To fund this project, the Council will need to entertain financing.
The only major capital project taking place in 2025 is the Station Road to Tudhope Street Reconstruction project which they are receiving a grant of $3,000,000 from the Province through the Connecting Link program and so the municipal portion is estimated to be approximately 3.6 million which they expect to fund from reserve and an additional grant from the federal government.
The budget also includes donations to external organizations including $20,000 for doctor recruitment.
https://pub-espanola.escribemeetings.com/filestream.ashx?DocumentId=11841
Screenshot by Rosalind Russell
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