Sudbury councillors approve 3.9% property tax hike

Sudbury councillors are moving forward with a $519-million budget for 2016 that includes a 3.9 per cent rise in property taxes.

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The rate increase is needed to pay for the municipal services, upgrades and investments included in the budget approved Wednesday night at city council.

Sudbury Mayor Brian Bigger got elected with a promise to freeze property taxes last year but he saidthe eventual increase was unavoidable.

"There was never the thought that we'd be holding to zero for years on end," Bigger said.

It may not be the number that everybody was looking for.- Sudbury Coun. Mike Jakubo

The rate hike means homeowners of an average bungalow worth $230,000 will be paying roughly $102 more in property taxes this year.

The money will go towards creatinga new transit pass for low-income commuters, more splash parks, city website improvements, Lorne Street upgrades and a $1 million investment toward the purchase of apositron emission tomography (PET) scanner, which tests for diseases such as cancer.

"What it shows is a willingness of council to invest in the transit system. It's a solution that is environmentally sound. It's moving in the right direction when we're talking about infrastructure and infrastructure investment," Bigger said.

'Growth and development'

The mayorsaid he is "excited" to get started on transit projects "as we invest in the future of our community."

The city appears poised for further growth and development, according toMike Jakubo, who serves as councillor and finance committee chair.

"This budget does a lot to improve the quality of life and place for the citizens of Greater Sudbury, while taking solid steps forward on open government and sustaining our level of capital investment," the councillor said in a statement.

"It may not be the number that everybody was looking for," Jakuboadmitted.

"What it does do is it represents an investment in open and transparent government, quality of life and place and sustained investment in our capital infrastructure. And what those three investments do is help to set this municipality up for growth and development in the future."