(November 20, 2023) - At its special meeting on Tuesday November 14, 2023, the municipal council of the Town of Champdoré unanimously adopted its 2024 general operating budget of $5,140,056.
The property tax rate will remain unchanged in the former Village of Saint-Antoine and will increase by five cents per $100 of assessment in the former local service district of Saint-Paul, of Grand Saint-Antoine and in the McKees Mills area. In the case of the former local service district of Sainte-Marie, the rate will increase by 8.8 cents per $100 of assessment.
Public safety was at the core of the budget decisions. The biggest additions in terms of expenditures are street lights every other pole in Sainte-Marie, in a section of McKees Mills and additions in the Saint-Paul area. An amount of $19,000 has been allocated to the Public Safety Committee for initiatives to improve public safety and be ready for emergency situations.
In an effort to remain transparent and keep citizens informed, the communications budget has increased from $3000 in 2023 to $15,000 in 2024. Elected officials unanimously decided to keep the same salary as 2023. In order to do work on the roads managed by the municipality, those of the former Village de Saint-Antoine, over $150,000 was added to the public works budget. Recreational facilities in each of the municipality’s neighbourhoods also got their share. An amount of $20,000 was allocated to recreation for the organization of activities throughout the territory.
“A significant increase in property values allowed the municipality to obtain additional revenues to cover the majority of inflation-related costs. The municipal council took the opportunity to focus its efforts on public safety initiatives: street lights in every region of the territory, specific funds for emergency measures and funds related to the community safety plan to be launched by the public safety committee within the next month. The town is giving itself the resources to improve its service offering while considering taxpayers’ ability to pay,” explains Mayor Jean-Pierre Richard.
The general operating budget is divided as follows: general government services $800,151, protective services $1,702,052, transportation services $939,693, environmental health services $491,763, environmental development services $188,803, recreation and culture services $511,472 and fiscal services $506,122.
An amount of $669,767 will be dedicated to the operation of the water and sewer systems. Due to an increase in the sewer service rate of $40 per unit for the year 2023, the annual bill of a typical household in the Saint-Antoine region will be $630.