The money
These pages give the detail behind my list. Each fact names the Township record it comes from, for you to check. Each promise says who decides. A mayor has one vote, and sets the agenda.
What we know
- Each year this term, Council passed a bigger tax increase than the year before. It passed 2.52% in 2023, 3.92% in 2024, 6.75% in 2025, 8.73% in 2026. Source: Council Resolutions 17/23, 355/23, 143/25 and 397/25.
- Our roads, pipes and buildings need $717,000 a year more than they get. This year's budget sets aside $69,750 toward it. Source: Asset Management Plan, approved 8 Apr 2025, p.84; 2026 Draft Budget, 30 Oct 2025, p.6.
- The cost to close the landfill and care for it after rose to about $6.2 million. That estimate went up $4.7 million in one year. The Township expects the site to close in 2030. Source: 2025 audited financial statements, Council agenda 22 Sep 2026, p.73.
- Borrowing went down. Long-term debt fell to $1,114,286 in 2025, one loan due in 2045. Source: same statements, p.72.
- When a project stands ready, grants come. The Highway 7 water project got $1.1 million. Source: Report R14, Grant Applications, 28 Jul 2026, p.199.
What I'll work to pass
- Close the landfill with outside money. Its Ontario permit says it must close, which suits a grant. Plan it in public: the cost, how we pay, and where our waste goes.
Who decides: Council. Funders decide grants. Source: Council agenda 25 Aug 2026, p.108. - A yearly report on the $717,000 gap. It shows what we set aside, what grants paid and what we still need.
Who decides: Council. - Count every contract and subscription within 90 days. List what each costs. Check for a cheaper one.
Who decides: Council alone. - Bring back economic development. Pay for it with what that count saves. Its tax-funded budget went from $87,920 in 2024 to $400 in 2026.
Who decides: Council, in the budget. Source: 2026 Final Budget, p.20. - Apply for every grant we qualify for. Post each bid on the front page of the Township website, win or lose.
Who decides: Council staffs it. Funders decide.