Ditch Infilling Vote Tonight

Spare residents the cost of ditch infilling
Other communities provide this service out of tax revenue, and so should Summerside.
The Guardian
Summerside residents who object to paying for ditch infilling have put up a valiant fight in arguing their case. City council's technical services committee may not agree with them, but residents could still win the day when the matter goes before council tonight and is finally decided.Since municipal amalgamation in 1995, Summerside has been operating the ditch infilling program for those areas brought into the boundaries of the expanded city of Summerside - Wilmot, Sherbrooke and St. Eleanors. Right now, the policy calls for residents to pay for 10 per cent of the cost of ditch infilling, and some residents have mounted a campaign to persuade the city to pay the full cost. The city gets funding from the federal and provincial governments for the work, they say, and so ditch infilling should simply be a service paid for through existing tax revenue.But the councillors who defend the policy say dropping the charge would cost the city $200,000 - revenue that would have to be recouped through property tax increases or through a reduction of other municipal services.The matter was debated at last week's technical services committee meeting, and with two of the three committee members favouring the status quo, the committee is recommending to council that it keep the 10 per cent co-pay in place. Council is scheduled to vote on this tonight. Four council members have already said they'll vote to remove the charge and three are on record as supporting it. That leaves one other councillor to determine the vote. If there's a tie, Mayor Basil Stewart will have to break it.In arguing their case, residents have pointed to Charlottetown and other municipalities where ditch infilling is a service paid for through general taxes. It's a compelling argument and it's one council shouldn't ignore. If taxes must go up to allow for full payment by the city, then so be it. At least all residents, and not just a select group, would bear the burden.