For every $100.00 of municipal evaluation, Verdun will impose a special borough tax of $0.0210

Anticipated revenues from this special tax have been fixed at $900,000.00, Mayor Claude Trudel explained. In addition to resorting to this imposition, the Council will have to apply certain restrictions in its expenses particularly in the renovation and maintenance of skating rinks the number of which will go from seven to three. It will moreover appropriate $475,200 of accumulated surplus.

The budget was adopted on Tuesday, October 9 during a special meeting of Borough Council. In a statement that the Mayor read in the beginning of the session, he reminded the attendees that he and his council members have respected the commitments they made since fall 2005.

With this allocation, Verdun will also benefit from a general indexation of 3.6% of its 2007 allocation, representing an increase of $1,159,300.00 to which will be added development funds amounting to $1,143,900.00, developmental level funds of $292,000.00 and certain adjustments amounting to $22,600.00.

Nevertheless, the Borough must, as the same time, participate in the budget deficit of the City of Montreal. This can be done in two ways: by the imposition of an expense reduction of $1,156,600.00 and by reducing staff at the ratio of 25.8 - years/persons - from now until the 2009 budget.

“For 2008, we have fixed a Borough budget that will amount to $35,574,500.00 in expenses and $4,848,100.00 in revenues”, Mayor Trudel pointed out. “Therefore, there is a significant gap between what we will be receiving from Montreal and the amount of our needs as itemized in our operating budget.”

During the adoption of its 2007 budget, Borough Council avoided imposing a special tax by taking $2,211,200.00 from its accumulated surplus. In the preceding year (2006), it had to resort to imposing a special tax of $0.0240 (2.4¢) for every $100.00 of evaluation.

“For the year 2008, we had to find another solution,” confirmed Claude Trudel. We cannot be drawing from our surplus indefinitely; we need to balance our operating budget. So we decided to impose a special Borough tax, an act enabling us to manage our operations well. This is not only in Verdun but in the rest of the City of Montreal. This special tax that will generate $900,000.00 will be combined with a surplus appropriation of $475,200.00 and supplementary revenues of $534,400.00 to fill the gap between the allocation and our actual expenses,” he explained.

Mayor Trudel also indicated that in spite of budget constraints, the Borough experienced accelerated development. He specifically cited L’Île-des-Sœurs, building construction, new homes in the Desmarchais-Crawford and Wellington-de-L’Église districts, the revitalisation of major roads, numerous structural projects completed along the shoreline, the vitality of the economy, and the Verdun assistance network.

“Despite financial constraints, we are taking all the necessary steps to articulate our vision through concrete and stable measures, he concluded. We respect our commitment. We are maintaining our directions as explained in our strategic development plan.”