Re: “ ‘Free’ plant an insult, Esquimalt mayor says,” June 19.
The property taxes for my Esquimalt home are $8,000 per year. Residents of Victoria pay $1,000 less for a house of the same assessed value, while Oak Bay residents pay $2,000 less per year. Unlike my mayor, I am not “insulted” by the Capital Regional District’s offer to pay our share of the McLoughlin Point plant’s capital costs. Rather, I appreciate a chance to mitigate future tax increases.
What did insult me was the cavalier attitude of Esquimalt’s mayor in a TV interview. In addition to rejecting the CRD’s offer, she indicated that she anticipated little opposition to establishing a municipal sewage-treatment plant in the town centre. Her plan is to combine the treatment plant with the long-wanted renovation of the downtown, including constructing nine- and 12-storey mixed-use buildings on top of the sewage plant. Given Esquimalt’s small tax base, the idea that the township would contemplate such a development concerns me greatly.
There are legitimate criticisms of the McLoughlin proposal, but it satisfies our legal requirements and took many years, angst and costs to get here. It is likely our only opportunity for a region-based solution. I believe delays and a fragmented collection of municipal-based systems will result in higher costs and greater financial risks for local taxpayers, even if we retain senior-government funding.
I don’t mind paying a premium to live in Esquimalt, but I hope that council will reconsider its position and act in the best financial interests of the electorate.
Daryl Jones
Esquimalt
