The largely negative reaction from citizens is what led Harrington Council to not change how it levies taxes from property owners for fire protection services.
Two public information sessions were held on Saturday, October 17 to inform citizens that Council was considering charging each property owner a fixed fee for fire protection, after deducting revenue generated by taxing vacant land. One session was held at the Harrington Valley Community Centre, and the other session was at the Lost River Community Centre.
An informal show of hands at each event indicated most residents were against changing the tax arrangement. No one in the audience at the Harrington Valley Community Centre supported the idea, and eight people at the Lost River meeting were in favour.
Based on the 2026 budget, the fee would have been $89 per residential building, although the amount for 2027 would have depended on the service’s budget and other factors. Using the 2026 property valuation as a benchmark, owners of properties valued below $344,800 would have paid more toward fire protection under the fixed-fee model, while those with homes assessed above that amount would have paid less.
“That’s very regressive in terms of tax,” said resident Willy Fournier at the Lost River meeting. He said amounted to asking the less wealthy to pay more.
“I strongly disagree with that approach,” he said.
Jonathan Morin said he opposed the changes even though he is one of the property owners who would have benefited.
Sharon Campbell was one of the residents at the Lost River meeting who supported changing taxation for fire services. Campbell said she lives a three-minute drive from a fire station, and the change would have created uniformity after her taxes have successively increased following annual assessments. She described basing the cost of fire services off assessment as a wealth tax.
