Niverville to increase taxes to pay for projects in 2025

The Town of Niverville will increase taxes by four percent next year in order to pay for a number of projects slated to begin in 2025.

What this means for homeowners is an $80 increase on their taxes for those with a home assessed at $400,000.

Council will invest about $20 million into six projects in 2025, one of which is the Red-Seine-Rat wastewater treatment plant, which will see Niverville’s contribution equal to about $33 million.

“What it means is that it allows these communities to grow because without having a wastewater (treatment plant) you wouldn’t be able to issue building permits for businesses and homes. It allows these communities to continue to grow,” said Mayor Myron Dyck.

The $190 million project received a $51 million loan from the Canadian Infrastructure Bank in April, which will see six municipalities (Niverville, Otterburne and the RMs of La Broquerie, Hanover, De Salaberry, and Tache) come together as a co-operative to build the plant.

Ground is expected to be broken in 2025.

The town has already begun plans for a new fire hall and operations shop to be built in 2027. The town has already paid more than $300,000 for the drawings of the plans which has a budget of between $4 million to $5 million.

“We’re hoping to not have to borrow money,” said Dyck about the project. “We’re putting away over a million dollars in taxes we collect every year into a special savings account. So, by the time the fire hall is done we will take the money out of the savings account, that we would have saved over three years, and hope to pay it that way. And we’ll be applying to see what other grants we might be able to get.”

Also, on the books is the expansion of Open Health with four new examination rooms set to open in the new year. The clinic has 13 doctors with plans to add more in 2025.

“We have a very good manager that is working very hard. Between doing things online and going to conferences and things like that, she’s doing a great job of being able to recruit and working together with our staff to (recruit and retain doctors).”

And to what is being labelled a precursor to a permanent regular library, the town will open its first “Take One, Leave One” lending library with mobile shelves and free computers for people to use in the south end of the arena. Dyck said either the town will have its own library in the future or be a part of a regional library.

“That’s still to be determined,” he said.

Other projects in the works for 2025 include the completion of Station Park and Opa’s Park, a $50,000 update to the splash pad, the addition of an RV park into Hespeler Park, and upgrades to Centennial Arena including a new Zamboni.

Another highlight in 2025 is the opening of Jette Studios, which has some in the Southeast calling Niverville the Hollywood of the North with production expected to begin early in January or February for its first film.

Dyck said all the internal and external investments into Niverville means jobs and opportunities for people to live and work in place with no need to commute. “It provides another industry as far as the studio is concerned that we don’t have,” said Dyck.

“It means additional tax dollars to help pay for things and business in general is good for growth. People don’t have to rely on going to the city, they can do more and more in the community in which they live.”