The Town of Lakeshore is bucking the trend in Essex County by raising residential, commercial and industrial development fees.
It's asked town staff to come back with a report on how to phase in a slight increase in residential fees, and a larger increase for commercial and industrial development.
Leamington is into its first of three years of eliminating the charges and Kingsville recently decided it too would get rid of them for a period. Essex Town Council has decided to cut its residential development fees in half for the next 18 months, but Lakeshore Mayor Tom Bain says his council didn't think it would be fair to taxpayers. "If the developers don't pick up the development charges, then somewhere, somehow, that money has to be raised and the only option raising it is to go to the taxpayer."
The report from staff is due back at council's next meeting on June 16.
Asked if there's been a lot of new development in the town, Bain responds, "we've held our own," and says he doesn't worry an increase will discourage development. "We have a municipality that is probably one of the fastest growing in Essex County," he says. "New business attracts new business."
