TOWN OF FALHER OPEN HOUSE

Welcome to the landing page for the June 2024 Town of Falher Open House.

The Town of Falher will be hosting an Open House on June 5th from 4pm-8pm at the Falher Regional Recreation Complex. This will be a chance for residents to visit information stations about the following topics:
• Town of Falher Land Use Bylaw Refresh
• Municipal Census
• Sidewalks
• Taxation

We look forward to seeing you there!

The information available in person has also been made available below for those who cannot attend in on June 5th.

 

Town of Falher Land Use Bylaw Refresh

 

Previous information: 2022 Land Use Bylaw Refresh Announcement

OPEN HOUSE SUMMARY

Background

  • The Land Use Bylaw regulates the use of land and budlings within the Town.
  • Current Land Use Bylaw (Bylaw No. 14-05) was adopted by Council in 2014, ten years ago.
  • Bylaw No. 14-05 has been amended over 30 times since its adoption, to respond to different circumstances, including new development proposals and legislative changes.
  • Council passed a motion in late 2021, directing Administration to prepare a new Land Use Bylaw that better reflects the needs of the community, following a comprehensive review of the current.
  • The project was overseen by a Steering Committee, comprised of 2 Councillors, the Chief Administrative Officer and a Planner from Mackenzie Municipal Services Agency.

Project Aims

  • To promote orderly, economical and beneficial development of land within the Town;
  • To expand the range of appropriate uses of land and buildings within the community;
  • To streamline the development approval process;
  • To increase housing choice and improve affordability;
  • To position the Town to achieve its growth potential.

Plan Process

  • Key Stages, Timelines and Deliverables

NEW LAND USE BYLAW – KEY CHANGES

  • Expanded the list of uses that are permitted and discretionary in residential, commercial and industrial zones
    • This means fewer LUB amendments, ensuring quicker and easy processing
    • Making it easy for new businesses and homes to be built in Town
  • Created definitions and enabling regulations for new/modern forms of housing/dwelling types
    • Examples include Tiny Homes and Shouse/Barndominium
  • Expanded and clarified information on Additional Dwelling Units
    • Making it easier to understand the rules and regulations for building separate living quarters on a property
  • Established criteria for having more than one primary dwelling on a single lot
    • Making it possible to build more homes
  • Increased the age limit for used Manufactured Homes to 15 years
    • Previously 10 years
  • Removed separate zoning for Manufactured Homes
    • To encourage different types of homes throughout town
  • Simplified sign regulations
  • Increased the percentage of lot coverage in residential districts to allow for more buildings
  • Expanded the use of sea-cans as accessory structures
  • Modernized information on new/renewable energy systems, such as solar.
  • New flexible parking requirements.
  • And many more!
Click here to view a map based on proposed Re-Zoning
Read the latest draft LUB here

Have your say!
Email your input, click here!

**

 

Municipal Census

The Municipal Census is being conducted between April 15 – July 15, 2024

It is extremely important that every resident be counted. Residents should have received a Security Access Code (SAC) to complete the online Census.

By completing your census online, you avoid the knock from our census workers.

The Secure Access Code (SAC) is used to complete the Census through a safe and easy-to-use online portal. Our census is very brief, taking only a few minutes can assist the Town of Falher in accessing Provincial and Federal grants, as well as providing valuable information for municipal service and planning decisions. We encourage as many residents as possible to complete their census online. Those who do not complete the census online will be visited in person by an enumerator to collect census responses.

https://censusalberta.ca/falher/

**

 

Sidewalks

The Town of Falher is looking for public input on Sidewalk Maintenance and Replacement. Currently Council is considering drafting a formal plan for the future of Sidewalks within the Town of Falher. Previous direction in decades past was to have sidewalks on both sides of the street for Main Street, with the same service for streets up to 1 block off of Main Street. With neighbourhoods beyond would feature sidewalks on only one side of the street.

Currently the Town has been replacing sidewalks in conjunction with road projects. However, as we have slowed down road replacement projects (extended life on many roads, major replacements already done, inflationary costs of other roadways), so has sidewalk maintenance.

Sidewalk condition is also affected by snow and ice build up. Currently there is no enforcement regulation for residents to take care of sidewalks. IE there are no bylaws/regulations for snow clearing. As a result, the winter weather degrades the sidewalks at an increased rate. If there were bylaws in place, this would also mean added cost/effort for enforcement of the bylaw.

The Town of Falher would like to gauge citizen interest in the future of Sidewalks in Falher.

  • Are residents prepared for the capital expenditures necessary to maintain the current level of service for sidewalks?
    • Do residents have the appetite for snow clearing bylaws & enforcement to increase the life span of sidewalks?
  • Is the community interested in fewer sidewalks? (targeted non replacement/removal)

As part of our Asset Management data, our entire inventory of Sidewalks is valued at $1,565,098 for 7,064 meters. (as full replacement value in 2020 dollars; inflation on these costs is near 35%). This number is provided for simple information, of course replacement would not occur all at once, however it provides information on the general cost of replacement. These costs also represent a lower cost/meter as they were part of a larger road replacement project. Initiating a sidewalk replacement project may be a higher cost if done in smaller pieces. Depending on variables, sidewalk projects can cost approximately $300-$400/meter.

Potential strategies are being drafted for strategic phase out should this be the direction explored.

Of main concern is that we will be facing large replacement costs moving forward, and public spending should not be used if the general public would like a change in services.

 

Click here for a draft suggestion on sidewalk phase out (coming soon)

 

Click to offer your opinion: Sidewalks Input

**

Taxation

Tax payments are due June 30. As the deadline falls on a Sunday, please ensure your payments are postmarked or processed by your financial institution before the payment deadline. If you want to apply for the Property Tax Monthly Payment Plan, please contact our office for more information.

Property taxes collected from residential and non-residential properties are one of the various revenue sources available to the Town of Falher to pay for municipal services.The Town of Falher distributes property tax notices in late May every year and asks property owners to pay their taxes in full by the due date of June 30 to avoid late-payment penalties.

Your Tax Notice
As a property owner, you receive a property tax notice every May. It indicates your share of municipal and education property taxes and the due date for payment.

Your Notice Explained
The Town believes it is important for you, as a property owner, to fully understand the information shown on your tax notice.

Education Property Tax
Provincial education property taxes are set by the Government of Alberta and account for approximately 15% of the total property tax amount. The Town of Falher collects the education tax amount on behalf of the provincial government.
Your property’s assessed value is used to calculate your share of Falher’s education property tax requisition. This part of your property tax is collected by the Town and sent to the Government of Alberta. The Town of Falher has no direct control over this amount and must collect it on behalf of the Government of Alberta.

Who Pays
All property owners in the Town of Falher, residential and non-residential, are required to pay education property taxes including those without children in school and senior citizens.

Use of Education Tax
The Government of Alberta states that education property taxes support public and separate school students in kindergarten to grade 12. Education property taxes are pooled and then distributed to all Alberta school boards on an equal per-student basis. The majority of these funds are for instruction, including teacher salaries, textbooks, and other classroom resources. For more information, please visit: Education Property Tax – Government of Alberta

Heart River Housing
A portion of your municipal tax bill is a regional requisition. In Falher, this is Heart River Housing. This regional requisition is determined by an independent board of individuals who may or may not be municipal elected officials from several communities. This part of your property tax is collected by the Town and sent to Heart River Housing. While the Town of Falher has 1 elected individual on the board, The Town of Falher has no direct control over this amount and must collect it on behalf of Heart River Housing.

Heart River Foundation was established in 1960 for the operation of seniors’ lodges in our region. In 1995, Heart River Housing was established as a Management Body under the Alberta housing Act. Heart River Housing represents 11 municipalities in the area: Big Lakes County, Donnelly, Falher, Faust, Fox Creek, Girouxville, High Prairie, M.D. of Greenview #16, Northern Sunrise County and Valleyview. They provide housing supports to more than 1,000 individuals in over 650 housing units.

Municipal Taxes

Municipal property taxes are set by the Town of Falher and help pay for a variety of services the Town provides. These services include:

  • police and fire protection,
  • road maintenance and snow clearing,
  • recreation such as parks, arena, curling rink, and swimming pool
  • neighbourhood infrastructure.

To learn how your portion of the municipal property taxes is calculated, refer to Municipal Taxes.

Municipal property taxes are set by Council. The calculation of each property owner’s share of municipal property taxes is based on 2 factors:

  1. The Town of Falher Budget
    (the amount the Town requires to continue offering municipal programs and services).
  2. The total assessed value of all properties in our city.

The costs of services are distributed among all properties, in the following manner:

budget ÷ total assessed value of all properties
= municipal tax rate

Then, to determine the exact amount each property owner is required to pay, the Town applies this tax rate to the value of your property in the following manner:

your property assessed value x municipal tax rate
= your municipal property taxes

Overall, changes in property values do not affect the amount the Town requires to continue providing municipal programs and services. If your property’s assessed value changes more or less than the average change in Falher, your tax increase will be more or less than the average tax increase.

 

Relationship between property assessment value and property taxes
Often the terms “assessment” and “taxation” are considered to be interchangeable.

However, assessment and taxation are very different. Although one impacts the other, each is a distinct and independent process.

“Assessment” is the process of estimating a dollar value on a property for taxation purposes. This value is used to calculate the amount of taxes that will be charged to the owner of the property.

“Taxation” is the process of applying a tax rate to a property’s assessed value to determine the taxes payable by the owner of that property.

The Municipal Government Act gives direction to Alberta municipalities in the areas of governance and administration, planning and development, and assessment and taxation.

 

Greater Detail on Assessement

 

Who prepares assessments in Alberta?
Assessments for all types of property are prepared by professional, certified assessors. Assessors receive training in a variety of areas including property valuation techniques, legislation, and quality assurance.

An assessor is hired by a municipality in one of two ways—as an employee of the municipality, or as a contractor. Contracting often occurs in smaller municipalities where the duties associated with calculating assessments are not a full- time activity. (The Town of Falher contracts this service from Compass Assessment Consultants Inc.) Regardless of the assessor’s employment situation, all assessors, whether they are contractors or municipal employees, must follow the same procedures and legislation. The majority of assessments prepared by the municipal assessor.

 

Assessment notices
Assessment notices are created from the information on the assessment roll. The assessment notice is the document municipalities send to property owners to tell them about the assessment of their property. An assessment notice or an amended assessment notice must show the following:

a) the same information that is required to be shown on the assessment roll;
b) the notice of assessment date;
c) a statement that the assessed person may file a complaint not later than the complaint deadline; and
d) information respecting filing a complaint in accordance with the regulations.

Each year, municipalities and the provincial assessor will be required to set a “notice of assessment date” between January 1 and July 1 and mail the assessment notices seven days prior to the “notice of assessment date.” Every municipality is required to send an assessment notice to every assessed person listed on the assessment roll. Each municipality must publish a notification in one issue of a local newspaper to announce that the assessment notices have been mailed to property owners within the municipality.  The Town of Falher’s looks like this and was posted on May 22nd , 2024.

Link: 2024 COMBINED ASSESSMENT & TAX NOTICES

 

Sometimes an error is found on an assessment notice. The assessed person can contact the assessor to have this information corrected. Corrections can only be made to current-year assessment notices. This means that an assessor cannot change an error, omission, or wrong description on an assessment notice from a previous year.

Each property listed on the assessment roll in a municipality receives an assessment notice, even if it is exempt from property tax. One of the important features of Alberta’s assessment system is that assessed persons have the ability to complain about their assessment or tax status. If an assessed party believes that his or her property should receive an exemption from assessment, property taxation, or both, then the property’s exemption status can be challenged via an assessment complaint. (appeal)

 

How to file a complaint
Complaints must be filed in the form prescribed in the regulations on or before the deadline shown on the assessment notice.

The complaint must:

  • indicate whatinformation shown on an assessment notice or tax notice is incorrect;
  • explain in what respect that information is incorrect;
  • indicate what the correct information is; and
  • identify the requested assessed value, if the complaint relates to an assessment.

If an assessment notice and tax notice are combined, the deadline for filing a complaint is on the tax notice. Municipalities must give the assessed person 60 days from the notice of assessment date to file a complaint.

Once the complaint has been filed, the assessment review board clerk will receive, review, and categorize the complaint. All parties will be notified of the date of the hearing, the timelines by which disclosure of evidence is required to be provided to the other parties and to the board, and the rules for disclosure of evidence. At the hearing, the complainant presents his or her case to the board. The respondent (usually the local assessor) presents information on behalf of the municipality. The assessment review board has 30 days after the hearing within which to render its decision. All decisions of an assessment review board must be in writing.

Impact of assessment complaint decisions
It is important to note that any decision an assessment review board makes is for the current year’s assessment only. This means that the decision does not apply to previous assessments, nor will it be applicable to the next year’s property assessment. For example, if the assessed value of a property is decreased as a result of a board’s decision, it will not result in adjustments to previous years’ assessments, nor will it necessarily have any bearing on assessments that are prepared in the future.

 

Information above is based on the Guide to Property Assessment and Taxation in Alberta and other information originally published by the City of Edmonton 1 2