Kelowna property taxes expected to go up less than $20
Final budget to be approved next week
James Moore
5/4/2012
Kelowna's 2012 property tax increase will come in at 1.12%.
That works out to less than $20 for the year for the average home owner.
City Financial Services Director Keith Grayston says City Hall tried to provide as much wiggle room as possible when the first draft of the budget was approved in January.
"We knew there was going to be additional requirement but we just weren't sure what exactly that would be."
Grayston says almost all of those budget requirements come from the Mounties.
"We had a policing resources study that was brought to Council earlier this year and the request will be for an additonal 7 RCMP members."
"There's also an additional cost from the (RCMP) contract that was signed recently."
The rate hike means an average tax increase of $18.26 over last year, based on a detached home worth $468,000.
City Council is expected to approve the property tax increase as part of the final budget at next Monday's meeting.
In total, the average tax increase from most Kelowna residents should come in at just under $17 for the year, once new tax rates from providers like the RDCO, School District 23 and Okanagan Regional Library are factored in.