Essex County passes 2025 budget with tax increase of around $60 per $300K of assessed value

Homeowners in Essex County will pay the county slightly more than $60 more per year in property taxes next year for every $300,000 of assessed value.

The county approved its 2025 budget Thursday with a 3.76 per cent tax levy worth $7,993,190. 

It includes money for new ambulances and new furniture for the Essex County Library system and continued funding for Leamington's homelessness hub, according to a news release issued by the county.

"This was a challenging year because of inflationary pressures," said CAO Sandra Zwiers.

"County of Essex staff from all departments are to be commended for building a fiscally responsible budget that works toward strategic plan priorities while carefully determining how every dollar can be spent as effectively as possible." 

The budget includes a new ambulance for Essex-Windsor EMS to support 16 new paramedics funded in the 2024 budget.

It also includes seven replacement ambulances, two replacement early response vehicles, two replacement trucks and 42 replacement stretchers for EMS.  

And it provides funding for the design of an EMS headquarters. 

Money to help people who are homeless

In addition, the budget creates a logistics technician position for EMS to ensure ambulances are regularly inspected and consistently ready for service.

And it creates a manager of employee wellness position to "take care of the people who take care of us," according to the news release.

"Essex-Windsor EMS is on track to respond to a record 65,000 calls by the end of 2024, and as the total number rises, so does the number of traumatic calls," the news release said. 

"A manager of employee wellness will proactively ensure paramedics get the critical care they need and will provide much-needed assistance to the existing peer support team."

The county will continue funding the Homelessness Hub in Leamington, and it will provide another $1 million, in addition to the $1 million in last year's budget, to the Bridge in Leamington as part of a two-year commitment to build 38 tiny homes.

It has also committed $2.3 million to renew aging and affordable housing stock. 

The county's 2025 $98.1-million road construction program includes $20.6 million for rehabilitation projects spanning 33 kilometres across multiple municipalities

Key projects include:

• The construction of a roundabout at the intersection of County Road 46 and Rochester Town Line

• Continued work on the corridors of County Road 42 and County Road 43

• Design work for the County Road 22 corridor enhancement project.

• Rehabilitation of two bridges 

• Replacement of three culverts

In addition, the budget provides $4.9 million for active transportation, including about 20 kilometres of paved shoulder projects. 

The county was forced to reduce the number of road and active transportation projects included in this year's budget in order to help keep the tax levy down, Warden Hilda MacDonald told CBC News.

It also reduced spending on maintenance equipment and on economic development.