Almost 30 years ago the province introduced Regional Government.  It is my understanding that Mayor Copps went down to Queens Park and protested emphatically.  He felt that the formation of the Regional Government was a cash grab whereby the City of Hamilton would be forced to support the significant cost for infrastructure that was necessary to support the growth of the outlying areas.  This decision was made at a time when the City of Hamilton was doing very well economically.

This decision required the Region to provide many services to the outlying communities.  Policing, waste management, water and waste water services, storm water management, Social Services, Public Health, economic development, legal advice, regional roads maintenance and regional planning are just a few of the former Regional Services.  The City of Hamilton was contributing roughly 70% towards the cost of these services while the outlining communities covered 30%.  For over 25 years Hamilton provided all these services prior to Amalgamation, but I do not recall the City of Hamilton residents screaming for the abolishment of the Regional Government.

Fast forward to the year prior to amalgamation . . .

The Provincial Government downloaded many costs to municipalities which they were not equipped to pay. At the same time Current Value Assessment started to take hold. Dramatic tax shifts were taking place. This all contributed to the perfect storm at the time of amalgamation. Despite this, or perhaps because of it, amalgamation was pushed through. Some would argue that the purpose of amalgamation was to help the City of Hamilton absorb the significant downloading cost that would have had a significant impact on the City’s financial situation. Others would argue that the City of Hamilton was landlocked, preventing its growth. And, of course, there was always the argument that amalgamation would create more efficiency. Whatever the reasoning behind it, amalgamation occurred and it has brought us to where we are now.

Each outlying community brought both benefits and liabilities at the time of amalgamation. In some cases, the liabilities were greater. According to a report provided to Burlington Council, Flamborough owed $4.5 million for a loan for Flamborough Utilities taken out in 1999. They had only paid on the interest up to 2000 – the principal was still untouched. On top of that they also had a significant debt on The Borer’s Creek debacle and their fire services required significant improvements to bring them up to the provincial standards.

Despite the fact that these liabilities were being added to the City of Hamilton, Council attempted to smooth the high emotional response brought about by amalgamation. In 2001, the City of Hamilton made some significant decisions to alleviate the tax increase in the outlying areas as a result of Current Value Assessment, something that is regulated by the Province of Ontario and which the City has absolutely no control. The decision was only meant to be a temporary buffer, not a permanent crutch. Hamilton was also the only city in Ontario that made these decisions, and it is apparent that they have only made equalizing and unifying the City Of Hamilton more difficult.

There were many different aspects to this buffer. One was that the Council of the day decided to change the tax formula by introducing Area Rating, where by the outlying areas are only taxed according to the services they receive. This formula is not used on the old Wards in Hamilton, despite the fact that there are areas in these Wards that have fewer services than some areas in the outlying communities. It is also my understanding that Hamilton Utilities absorbed the liabilities of the Flamborough Utilities, thereby saving the taxpayers a higher tax rate to pay this down. Another was to use approximately $1.5 million of the Casino Revenue to pay down the Borer’s Creek debt and the remaining $1.5 million of the Casino Revenue to offset the tax increases in Flamborough largely attributed to the significant increase in the value of their homes. Again, this was only meant as a temporary buffer.

In 2007, the Borer’s Creek debt was paid down. City Staff recommended that the Casino Revenues go directly into the General Revenue Account, as all other tax revenue does.  Council, after some debate, decided that we would support giving Flamborough approximately $3.2 million to again offset taxes directly attributed to Current Value Assessment, $500,000 went to Ancaster to offset the cost of enhancing the fire services, and just over $200,000 went to the general levy to help all of Hamilton, including Ancaster and Flamborough. It was clear in that debate that this was going to be the last year for this support and that the crutch could not continue indefinitely.

By phasing in the tax increases over a number of years, the increases in the outlying areas were moderated, but at the expense of the old City of Hamilton. The old City understood harmony was necessary for the future relations within the New City Of Hamilton and absorbed the cost. Glanbrook, Ancaster, Stoney Creek and Dundas were slowly brought to the same level of taxation as the rest of Hamilton. But because of the Casino Revenue, Flamborough did not see the gradual increase to bring them level with the rest of Hamilton. Because of this they are now seeing a large increase when the other outlying areas are now seeing the same sort of increases as the old City. The Casino Revenue just deferred the increase to a later time, and we are seeing that now.

In the 2008 Budget deliberations, the Area Rating issue was put off until June and the Casino Revenue issue was separated to deal with during the 2008 Budget deliberations. I was determined that at the very least, before this budget was approved, we needed to have a plan to phase the Casino Revenue back into the General Revenue Account. When I started my research, I soon came to realize that Flamborough had the second highest valued houses on average in the city, the second highest median income in the city and yet had the lowest taxes on the same valued house compared to every other Ward in the city. Flamborough Residents also complained that their assessment was increasing at a significantly higher rate than the rest of Hamilton.

The Municipality has no control over the assessment models. I wish it did. Ward 8 has seen over 39 percent assessment increases since 2001, not much lower than the average in Flamborough of 45 percent. Why have the residents in my Ward not seen money set aside to specifically lower their taxes? They have been hurt by the Current Value Assessment almost as much as Flamborough has. However, to do so would be at the cost of the rest of the City, and that is unfair and unjust.  We are one city; we cannot afford to continue giving preferential treatment to different Wards – all Wards have their difficulties, and it is not a good road to go down.

I was reminded recently of an elderly gentleman that showed up to one of my community meetings and told me that he has lived in the neighbourhood for over 40 years and his wife had just become a resident of a neighbouring retirement home. He sold his car so that he could continue to live in his home as long as possible but because of Current Value Assessment, his property taxes were pushing him out of his home and his neighbourhood and away from his wife. This situation is not isolated to the outlying areas.  It just is not fair to only provide relief in one geographic area of the city.

There are many homes in my Ward that have faced double digit tax increases and have not had any financial assistance from the City. There are neighbourhoods that are still rural cross-sections on septic systems and that still do not have access to transit yet they have been paying the same tax rate as the rest of the old City. These taxpayers do not have the benefit of a discounted rate that Area Rating provides, and they do not complain because they know that it is for the benefit of the whole City. They realize that the services will come quicker if the funds are available.

The notion that because the money from the Casino was generated in Ward 15, it should stay in Ward 15 makes no sense. Some Inner City Wards have some of the poorest residents in the City Of Hamilton – should they be allowed to keep all the tax revenue generated from the industry in their Wards to offset their taxes? Should Wards without industry be forced to pay higher taxes because there are no large commercial sources of Tax Revenue? Let’s be realistic – if we start dividing up where the revenue goes according to where it was generated, it will be a very slippery slope. Judging from the emails and phone calls I have received, many residents in Hamilton, Stoney Creek, Dundas, Ancaster and Glanbrook agree.

Every Ward is faced with challenges. As a community, we need to be aware of each others tribulations and look beyond the Ward boundaries. The pointing of fingers must stop! The residents of Flamborough are hard working; they pay their taxes and contribute significantly to the community as do all other Wards in our City. I came from a small community and appreciate some of the frustration that is being felt. It is time we work as a whole community and not as a divided community. We can accomplish a lot if we give it a chance and move forward as one City.