Friday
January 29, 2016 (Vol. 41 No. 8)
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Birds of a feather: The number of bald eagles spotted along the Fraser River delta has steadily risen over the past four decades, writes By the Bay columnist Anne Murray. i see page 13
S U R R E Y
w w w. p e a c e a r c h n e w s . c o m
$100 levy for recreation remains, though finance chair dismisses idea of increasing it
Surrey property tax bills on the rise Kevin Diakiw Black Press
Surrey residents should brace for an increase in their property taxes this year as council grapples with how to balance the budgets. Surrey Coun. Tom Gill told Black Press Tuesday that the finance committee has met to discuss the city’s capital plans and costs, and how those can be met. He said he’s planning a 3.9-per-cent
property-tax increase. That amounts to $70.28 in taxes added to the average home worth $671,000. Add to that a one-per-cent road levy ($18.02), and the hike becomes $88.30. The levy was introduced in 2007 as a five-year measure. It has increased by one per cent since then and now represents $110 for the average home. If Gill’s property tax proposal is passed as recommended, the road levy will
amount to $128 on the average tax bill. In addition, the city is looking at a 3.9-per-cent increase in fees and charges, such as business licences, dog licences and recreation-centre fees. In Surrey’s last five-year financial plan, council aimed to increase property taxes by 2.9 per cent this year. The current plan bumps that up by one per cent. Utilities – including garbage, sewer and water – will increase by $27.50 per
home, half of which is a result of Metro Vancouver increases. The new $100 recreation and culture levy announced weeks after the 2014 election will remain in place this year. Gill had considered increasing it, but has since dismissed that idea. “The emphasis on this budget is (meeting the obligations for) some of the capital projects that we have,” Gill said. i see page 4
Coun. Tom Gill
Water deadline looms
Authority rejects extension for city Melissa Smalley Staff Reporter
Boaz Joseph photo
Semiahmoo Peninsula resident Sean Whyte, 30 – an Edmonton Eskimos kicker – high-fives students during a visit with the Grey Cup to Bayridge Elementary in South Surrey Monday. The stop was among a number of local guest appearances scheduled for the prestigious trophy, which will next be fought for on Nov. 27 in Toronto. Thinking of replacing your sofa because it no longer gives you the same level of comfort it once did?
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The City of White Rock will not have any extra time to implement secondary disinfection of its water supply, after Fraser Health rejected the city’s request to extend the deadline beyond June 30, 2016. The request came after a Jan. 11 meeting, during which council heard from Fraser Health officials about the need for secondary disinfection, as well as health and infrastructure effects of chloramine and chlorine use as treatment methods. Council voted unanimously that evening to request an extension from Fraser Health for implementing a treatment plan and to use chlorine, not chloramine, after criticism from residents over potential negative health effects of the proposed treatment. In a Jan. 18 letter from Fraser Health in Monday’s council agenda, environmental health officer Lloyd Struck said the city “did not provide any valid reasons to postpone” disinfection, which Fraser Health directed the city to undertake after a 2010 boil-water advisory. i see page 4 30 seconds to OPEN
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