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Norwich Township Approves Operating Budget

Norwich Townships Operating budget will see an overall levy increase of 5.7 percent for ratepayers in 2017.

NORWICH TOWNSHIP - Norwich Township has adopted its 2017 Operating budget. 

It will see an overall levy increase of $5.7 percent for ratepayers in 2017. This works out to about $49.95 on the average residence. CAO Kyle Kruger tells Heart FM their are a lot of reasons for the increase. 

"One of the significant ones we have seen for the last number of years is the annual reduction in the funding from the Province, that was down another $99,000 this year and that in itself results in a 1.4 percent tax impact on residents. Our hydro costs have increased significantly, that's an annual impact of $41,000 more over the prior year despite some of the efforts we have made to reduce our hydro consumption." 

Mayor Larry Martin says a lot of the increase is due to those things that they can't control. 

"Overall those things that we can't control come to a 3.23 percent increase and if you compare that to the 5.7 percent increase you are only really looking at a 2.5 percent actual increase in our Operating cost."  

The budget also includes an added service level for gravel and road infrastructure which will see all loosetop roads resurfaced with new gravel very 4 years instead of every 5 years. Martin says this is going to be beneficial in the long run. 

"We have found that in the 4th and 5th year the roads are getting to be in real rough shape in the cycle, so by bringing that back to a 4 year cycle we figure that in time we may even be able to bring it back to a 3 year cycle depending cost. It's an added service and that almost accounted for a 1 percent increase. In total we are still being responsible, it's just that the numbers can be misleading." 
 

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