Local improvements are construction projects that upgrade or improve infrastructure in all residential, commercial, industrial and institutional districts. A local improvement is regulated by the Municipal Government Act (MGA) and our Infrastructure Renewal Policy.
Each year Council for the Town of Vermilion prepares a budget plan for the following projects:
- Water and/or Sewer Line Replacement
- Curb and Gutter Construction
- Sidewalk Construction
- Street or Lane Construction
A local improvement project can be proposed by, the Council for the Town of Vermilion or a group of property owners who petition for a local improvement. In both cases, property owners have an opportunity to support or oppose a local improvement project. Successful petitions in support or opposed to a proposed project would require the signatures from at least two-thirds of the affected property owners and the owners who do sign the petition would need to represent at least one-half of the total property assessment values of the affected area.
Notice of a Local Improvement Project
When a local improvement project has been tendered, a Notice of Intent is sent to the property owners informing them of the proposed project and the estimated tax assessment. Property owners then have 30-days to petition the project. If the property owners are in support of the project, the project proceeds to construction and a second notice is sent after the project is complete informing the property owners of the actual project costs and tax assessment. Property owners have the option to pay the local improvement tax in full or opt to have the tax applied to their annual property taxes for the next 10 years. At any point of time during the 10 years, a property owner can pay the local improvement tax.
For those looking at purchasing a home, it is always best to ask your realtor and/or lawyer to do a tax search on the property to see if there are any current or proposed local improvement taxes on the property. Proposed local improvement taxes are not listed on properties until the construction year.
Local Improvement Tax
A local improvement tax can be assessed on properties that benefit from the local improvement. No properties are exempt from a local improvement tax and not all local improvements are assessed to the property owners as a tax.
A local improvement tax is assessed by the frontage and/or flankage calculations of the lot to determine a uniform tax rate for all properties that will be benefiting from the projects. The frontage and/or flankage is measured in meters and calculations are determined as per the Local Improvement Frontage Calculation Policy.
Calculating Your Tax Assessment
Frontage Assessments: Frontage is the average of the assessable front and rear length of a property. In most cases, assessable frontage is the same as the actual frontage.
Figure A illustrates a frontage assessment. Properties 1-6 are all assessed for a local improvement tax based on the assessable frontage of 15.24 meters. Each property would be assessed 15.24 m (front) x 15.24 m(rear)/2 = 15.24 m total frontage.
Figure A – Local Improvement Frontage Assessment Area
Flankage Assessments: Flankage is the average of the assessable side lengths of a property. Flankage is only assessed on commercial, industrial and institutional properties. Residential properties are not assessed flankage. For classification of your property please refer to the Land Use Map.
Figure B illustrates a flankage assessment. Property 1 is charged for a local improvement based on the assessable flankage of 24 meters. Only property 1 would be assessed 24 m (left side) x 24 m (right side)/2 = 24 m total flankage.
Figure B – Local Improvement Flankage Assessment Area
