An open letter to Alleyn-et-Cawood mayor, Carl Mayer
I’m deeply dissatisfied with the expected 370% increase in property taxes in Alleyn-and-Cawood. This exorbitant increase is not only unjustifiable, it also constitutes a flagrant attack on the dignity and financial stability of our region’s residents.
First and foremost, I demand a clear and detailed explanation of the reasons that
led to this drastic tax increase overnight. It’s incomprehensible that the authorities can impose such a financial burden without any valid justification. Residents deserve tangible, transparent answers.
Furthermore, I strongly condemn the total lack of public consultation in this process.
It’s unacceptable that residents are excluded from decisions impacting their lives and
well-being.
Our tax bill will rise from $6,000 to nearly $20,000. The municipal value of our property has risen overnight to more than $1,700,000. How can we justify this increase when we live in a region far from all services. For example, we have to drive 25 minutes to pick up our mail, or 45 minutes to go to the grocery store. We’re far from the city, hospitals, and our workplaces. We have no water service… Add to that the cost of gas and insurance. Who’s going to pay that kind of money for a property in a remote area? The federal government recently decided public servants will be in the office three days a week. We’re no longer in the context of the pandemic, when everyone was leaving cities to work remotely full-time. The economic context has changed.
This assessment is disconnected from the reality of the post-pandemic real estate market of 2024, in a context of economic uncertainty and high interest rates. It’s absurd that our taxes are calculated on the basis of an artificially inflated value that in no way corresponds to the real value of our properties. Last November, the property next door sold for $322,000; a three-bedroom cottage overlooking the lake, on an acre of land. From one day to the next, this value would be over a million dollars? No recent sale has been concluded at a price as exorbitant as the appraisal mentioned for 2025. Three other cottages recently sold on Lake George, with prices ranging from $322,000 to $450,000.
What’s more, school taxes will also rise, adding an even heavier financial burden. This massive increase in school and municipal taxes will put many families in difficulty, exacerbating the housing crisis. Many citizens are vulnerable and will be defenceless in the face of this increase.
This tax increase is a form of disguised expropriation of land and homes. By imposing such a crushing tax burden, authorities are de facto forcing homeowners to sell their properties at sacrificial prices in order to pay their taxes.
Residents demand answers, account-ability and immediate action to rectify this
untenable situation.
Caroline Roy
DANFORD LAKE
