2025 Zorra budget looking at 5.26% tax levy increase

Connor Luczka, Echo Correspondent

The brunt of budget deliberations are finished in the Township of Zorra, with a projected 5.26 per cent tax levy increase expected when the final bylaw comes back to council on Dec. 14.

Council went through the operating budget at its Nov. 20 meeting, but no major reductions were made. Mayor Marcus Ryan called it a “responsible budget.”

“I don't wish the number was lower,” Ryan said during the meeting. “I'm happy with what our residents are going to get for the now 5.26 per cent increase, I think they are going to get value for it.”

The other half of the budget, the capital plan, had been discussed earlier at the Nov. 6 meeting and no changes were made to it. It is a nearly $3.8 million, or 1.57 per cent, increase over last year. The operating budget has an over $8.4 million increase over last year, a rise of 3.4 per cent.

Although listed in the presentation and report as a total increase of 4.97 per cent, Director of Finance Kim Grogan later indicated that after an investigation some wages in the recreation department were not included. $33,742 was added to the operating budget.

Last year’s tax hike was 12.26 per cent, the largest increase in years.

The final rate will be set once the budget bylaw has been passed, returned assessment rolls have been received, and the tax ratios have been set by Oxford County.

The assessed value that is key to what residents pay each year comes from the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC) rather than the market value of a home.

The last time a general province-wide assessment occurred was in 2016, before housing prices exploded across much of the country. Although one was scheduled to occur in 2020, it was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Although no major changes were made, council had a fulsome, line-by-line discussion and each expressed that they were happy with how it shaped up. Coun. Paul Mitchell in particular asked numerous clarifying questions about certain “red flags,” though was satisfied with every answer.

“When I go through those numbers, there's nothing really to argue with,” Mitchell said after questioning staff. “I'm confident that staff are providing us with the best available numbers they can come up with. And in some cases, it would be nice if the numbers were lower, but that's the way the world works.”

“We, I believe, experienced what has been, at least in recent history, the most significant increase on taxation for our residents and businesses,” Coun. Katie Grigg said. “Those decisions were not taken lightly last year, those were really challenging decisions, and we've had to sort of carry that forward as a community. So, what I was really hoping heading into this year was something that was going to be a little bit more digestible, because everything has been so expensive for us, not just in our property taxes, but in every other aspect of life.”

She added residents are struggling but it doesn’t mean council should cut corners and not be financially responsible.

The final budget bylaw will be coming for council consideration on Dec. 14. A scheduled special meeting for budget deliberations on Nov. 27 has been cancelled.

The nearly 80-page 2025 budget is included in the Nov. 20 meeting agenda. It can be accessed here: https://zorra.civicweb.net/document/47366/2025%20Draft%20Budget.pdf?handle=07FDFC59D8A0497297403D3B6CE86C34.