A recent decision taken by the elected officials of Saint-Zotique raised the discontent of certain citizens who came to the public meeting on Tuesday, March 19 to obtain answers from the municipal administration.

It was the increase in taxation applicable to vacant land that aroused passions during the first question period of the meeting.

One of the owners affected by the increase addressed elected officials, specifying that his tax bill, for this lot, increased significantly from $1,400 in 2023 to $2,400 in 2024. “What is -what justifies this increase?”, he asked the deputy mayor Yannick Guay, councilor of district 2 who replaced the first magistrate Yvon Chiasson, currently on vacation.

“The City of Saint-Zotique has decided to apply a new provincial government regulation which allows it to increase taxation on vacant land. This ensures us additional income for the current year and in this way, we can limit the presence of these lands on our territory. Some will be tempted to build a residence on their lot or even to get rid of it,” he said.

According to the figures he shared with the citizens present at the meeting, the territory of Saint-Zotique has 142 vacant lots, which will allow the City to collect an additional $240,000 in its coffers for the year 2024.

“Personally, I would keep my land to give it to my nephews or nieces, but it will be difficult to do so if the tax bill continues to increase. We are having more and more difficulty finding housing at a decent price and the only way you have found to make money is this? This is nonsense,” said one of the owners affected by the tax increase.

For his part, François Genest asked elected officials the reasons explaining the implementation of this new regulation? “Because we will face several expenses in 2024, particularly with regard to employee salary increases and snow removal, and we wanted to be able to increase the expected revenues as much as possible to be able to meet our financial obligations,” said added Mr. Guay.

For his part, Mr. Beaulieu, owner of a vacant lot located at the water's edge, wanted to explain his situation to the aldermen. “My land is valued at $330,000 according to the City. The municipal tax bill that I received is $6,050. In short, it's as if I had built a house valued at $815,000 on the land, that makes no sense. This is a great way for the municipal administration to legally steal from us with a supporting invoice. We paid $1.7 million last year to dredge three canal entrances, is this normal?"

District 5 councilor Jean-Pierre Daoust seized the opportunity. “In preparing the budget this year, we had two choices. We could increase taxes by 15 or 16% or we could increase them by 7.9% and increase taxation for vacant land. Why did we opt for the 2nd choice? Because the owner of this land always has the option of selling it.”

“We understand your point of view, but this is the method the City has opted for in order to obtain revenue quickly and easily,” said Mr. Guay.

And what about vacant lots on which owners cannot build, asked a citizen? “We are awaiting a response from the assessor, but if it is established that we really cannot build on the land, it will be re-evaluated and the tax rate will be readjusted according to the parameters of this batch. One of the reasons why we could not build would be, for example, the presence of a humid environment on the land,” confirmed general manager Sylvain Chevrier.

For his part, Paul Ladouceur addressed elected officials for clarification. He explained that the vacant land he owns is located next to his land and his residence. If he wishes to annex the vacant lot to his land, can he do so and if so, should he pay the $1,100 tax bill requested by the City?

“This is indeed one of the options available to owners. It is possible to do it. Thus, it is no longer a vacant lot and it is no longer subject to provincial government regulations,” clarified Mr. Guay.