LaSalle faces 'barebones' budget amidst financial pressures

LaSalle Town Council received a brief but grim preview of its 2025 budget on Tuesday evening.

In a presentation to council, Dale Langlois, the town’s director of finance, said a "challenging" budget has left LaSalle in a tough position.

According to a staff report, the proposed 2025 budget pitches a more than $4.6-million increase in the municipal tax levy.

Based on the average residential property in LaSalle, Langlois said this translates to an annual increase of $209.

"Our budget is barebones," Langlois said. "Moving forward during the deliberation sessions, if council wishes to reduce the operating budget, there's going to be some tough choices to make. There's going to be some consequences."

In an attempt to ease the burden, Langlois told council that staff have already reduced the budget by $900,000.

While in previous years the town could benefit from added interest revenue, the Bank of Canada has cut rates in recent months.

"So, if there is some reductions, we will come back, but there will be some consequences, which we'll lay out to council in detail, whether it be pushing back projects, reducing level of service," he said.

Ahead of the meeting, Deputy Mayor Michael Akpata, who was in the role of acting mayor due to Mayor Crystal Meloche’s absence, told CTV News he could not comment on the budget.

"The last thing I want to do is misrepresent the position of the mayor," he said. "So yes, we are receiving the budget today and there will be a lot of review of each line in the budget to make sure we do the most responsible thing for all the residents of the Town of LaSalle."

The complete proposed 2025 budget is expected to be released Wednesday.

The budget will be presented to council during budget deliberations, which begin Dec. 4.