The Town of Watrous raised property taxes by an average of 3.2 per cent in its budget approved by council this week.

Balancing that increase against the needs of the community is always a challenge, administrator Orrin Redden said.

“Every year there's never enough money to do all the projects and maintenance council would like to do, so it’s sort of that balancing act that they play,” administrator Orrin Redden said.

The town is pitching in on the cost to replace the self-contained breathing apparatus units for the fire department. Watrous, Manitou Beach and the RMs of Morris, Wood Creek, Usborne and Wreford are splitting the $70,000 bill.

This is the second of five annual instalments of around $70,000 for the town’s contribution to the new REACT landfill near LeRoy, which has been a “significant increase” to the town’s Environmental Health Services budget, he said.

The budget includes the town’s $300,000 share of the water/sewer bill for its East Side Industrial Development.

The town will pay $150,000 this year to begin developing an additional raw water source to ensure adequate supply.

Watrous is also spending $25,000 on cemetery upgrades and $60,000 for a new arena chiller, while a new $120,000 Zamboni is being funded entirely by donations from the Watrous and district business community.

Council is also considering participating with Watrous Minor Ball, schools and Wildcats Football on a new washroom/concession/storage building in the sportsgrounds.