About 40 people attended the information session that outlined the steps being taken by Pictou, Stellarton, New Glasgow and the Municipality of Pictou County to study the advantages and disadvantages of becoming a regional government.
After a slide show presentation outlining where the units were in the study process, the public asked their own questions, many of which focused on the financial workings of the proposed new regional government.
Former Pictou town councillor Raymond Gregory questioned if there would be any real savings by cutting back the number of councillors to one regional council because salaries for the new council would probably be higher based on a more demanding workload.
County Warden Ron Baillie said an independent consultant will be studying the makeup of a new regional council as well as their salaries. In the current format, councillors receive an average of about $10,000 a year for their service, but he expects that a reduction of councilllors, even at a higher salary, would result in savings.
Other residents were concerned about their tax rates rising under a new regional government, but Baillie said the new structure would be a general tax rate for everyone and an area tax rate based on the services provided in each municipal unit.
He reassured the crowd that a new computer program will be in place so every resident can compare what they are paying for taxes under the current system and what it would be under a proposed regional government.
The CAOs and politicians from each of the towns and county also said there would be plenty of other public meetings to update people in addition to information that will be provided on its website, onepictoucounty.com.
“We shouldn’t be looking at this to see what is in it for us, but what’s in it for Pictou County,” Baillie said. “If someone is interested in coming in and setting up business in Pictou County, what do they do now? They call the county or six different areas and this should be one-stop shopping because at the end of the day, the status quo isn’t working. Is this the answer right now? We don’t know but it (the answer) should be based on facts.”
Some people questioned why Trenton and Westville were not part of the MOU since municipalities involved can get out up until the URB gives its final approval.
“We reached out to them and we had two good meetings and correspondence back and forth, but they haven’t said, and at the end of the day we can’t keep waiting,” Baillie said. “We have to move forward or we will be behind. The four units would love to have six.”
