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Gaudeamus Chamber Choir fares well at Guelph Festival CHAMBER MUSIC PAGE 11 The Georgetown Eagles captured the provincial Jr. B baseball championship PAGE 12 TOPS IN ONTARIO www.theIFP.ca Tuesday, August 30, 2011 Halton Hills' award-winning newspaper serving Acton & Georgetown 24 Pages 50 Cents (+GST) Town staff says 5.5% budget hike is needed By CYNTHIA GAMBLE Staff Writer Town staff has begun work on the 2012 municipal budget and is recommending to council that a 5.5 per cent tax hike is needed to maintain services next year. Council considered the request at last night's (Monday's) budget meeting at the Civic Centre. Details will be online at www.theifp. ca and in the Thursday edition of The Independent & Free Press. The 5.5 per cent increase works out to a $20/$100,000 of residential assessment increase over last year's Town's tax bill. In other words if your home is assessed at $400,000, your increase would be $80. The overall tax impact, however, combined with education and regional taxes would be 3.1 per cent (or $31/$100K of assessment). The Town's portion includes the Hospital Redevelopment Levy-- the taxpayers' share of the renovation/expansion project at Georgetown Hospital. According to a report prepared for council by Wendy O'Donnell, Manager See BUDGET, pg. 3 Dogged determination Eight-year-old Monti, the Cardigan Welsh corgi cleared every obstacle Sunday without a fault and was a crowd favourite at an Agility Association of Canada-sanctioned dog agility trial at Campaign Dog Academy in Georgetown held over the weekend. The event was a fundraiser for the Ontario Veterinary College Pet Trust, a charity for animals with life-threatening illnesses whose families can't afford to treat them. A total of $2,650 was raised for the charity and was donated in the name of Kitchener man Tomi Walker, an agility enthusiast who was killed in an accident four years ago just before he was to come to the Georgetown event. Photo by Jon Borgstrom Vi s i t o u r s h o w r o o m Now Available on 2011 LD Trucks · your window & door professionals · 341 Guelph St., Unit 3 Georgetown 905.873.0236 www.buy-wise.ca info@buy-wise.ca · awarded readers choice 16 times · - - Lease rates from 7e HANDLE ALL INSURANCE work. sTruck Accessories s5PHOLSTEry s(Eavy %QUIPMENT 'LASS s7INDow 4INTING 354 Guelph Street, Georgetown 0.8% (905) 873-1655