Mr. Allan provided an overview of the cost sharing agreement, highlights include: the history of the cost sharing agreement; purpose to provide services to residents; agreement only considers operating costs not capital costs; allowance for capital replacement and depreciation; weighted assessment; user charges; use of polls to calculate assessments; agreement last reviewed in 2001; from 2012-2020 cost have gone up approximately 2.5% per year; changes to assessments in all three municipalities since 2012; cost of the recreation cost sharing agreement by average household; cost per service under the agreement; and usage statics.
Members then posed questions to Mr. Allan and discussed the cost sharing agreement highlights include: paying cost sharing services to other municipalities when same services are offered by Mississippi Mills (some recreation and Library); calculating weighted assessed values; if Mississippi Mills receives any money from other municipalities; review of agreement with cost sharing committee; input in how money is spent; why the agreement was reviewed in 2001; assessment based on property values (are they set by MPAC); inflation rates; how costs are calculated; review of the Carleton Place budget process and how cost sharing funds are being spent; who determines the operating and capital budgets for the related cost sharing items; how often should the agreement be reviewed; users provided from Carleton Place (hard numbers); requirement for third party review or audit; a board to oversee agreement with equal membership from all member municipalities; previous efforts to discuss the cost sharing agreements; and Library board delegation on October 20th.