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improvements
affect your
property and
your taxes.
improvements
local
calgary.ca
call 3-1-1
Local improvements
Introduction
This brochure explains how local improvements affect
your property and your taxes.
Table of contents
Defining local improvements . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Governing local improvements. . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Initiating local improvements. . . . . . . . . . . . 2
What regular taxes cover. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Reasons for local improvements . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Requesting a local improvement. . . . . . . . . . . 4
Petitioning against a local improvement . . . . . . . 5
Assessing a local improvement. . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Assessing residential properties. . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Assessing non-residential properties. . . . . . . . 10
How is my cost determined? . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Other assessment methods. . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Paying for local improvements. . . . . . . . . . . 12
Disagreeing with my assessment. . . . . . . . . . 13
1
Defining local improvements
Local improvements are construction projects upgrading
or improving infrastructure in residential, commercial and
industrial areas. Examples include street or lane paving,
driveway crossing construction, new or replacement
sidewalk, curb and gutter, as well as street lighting.
2
Reasons for local improvements
Local improvements are initiated for several reasons.
As part of an on-going program, all sidewalks, curbs and
gutters in older communities are inspected and ranked
on a priority list based on their condition. Each year, The
City initiates replacement projects based on this list.
3
Requesting a local
improvement
1. Obtain a petition package including a petition form
and map, by calling The City of Calgary Operations
Centre at 3-1-1. Out of town call 403-268-2489 or
email us at ccweb@calgary.ca.
2. To be valid, the petition form must be signed by
two-thirds of the affected property owners who
represent at least one-half the total assessment of the
affected area, according to the last revised assessment
roll. All signatures must be obtained within a 60-day
period, in accordance to provisions in the Municipal
Government Act.
3. The completed petition form, affidavit and statement
of witness must be returned to The City as indicated
in the package.
4. The affected property owners are notified in writing
whether or not the petition is valid. When a valid
petition is received, the proposed project is included
in the next available group of local improvements.
Affected property owners are notified of The City’s
intention to undertake a local improvement.
Note: The City normally processes two groups of local
improvement projects each year. The first group is
scheduled for Council approval prior to the beginning
of the construction season. The second is scheduled for
Council’s approval in mid-summer. Depending on the
amount of work and weather conditions throughout the
construction season, projects in the second group may be
completed by the end of the construction season.
It takes a minimum of four months to process a group of
local improvement projects. This means petitions must be
received by The City before the end of March to enable
project approval in the current year.
As outlined above, this does not mean projects will be
constructed in the current year. Petitions for projects
received after March are included in the first group of
local improvement projects the following year.
4
Petitioning against a local
improvement
1. A petition package must be obtained from The City.
See “Requesting a local improvement,” number one.
2. To be valid, the petition form must be signed by two-
thirds of the affected property owners who represent at
least one-half the total assessment of the affected area,
according to the last revised assessment roll.
3. The completed petition form, affidavit and statement
of witness must be returned to The City within 30
days of the mailing date of the Notice of Intention to
Undertake a Local Improvement.
4. The affected property owners are notified in writing
whether or not the petition is valid.
5. If the petition against the proposed local improvement
is valid, The City cannot proceed with the proposed
improvement. The City deletes the local improvement
from the Local Improvement Bylaw and advises City
Council of the valid petition.
6. If the petition against the proposed local improvement
is invalid, City Council is advised of the reason and
then decides if the proposed local improvement is
deleted from the Local Improvement Bylaw.
7. Affected property owners will be notified in writing of
Council’s decision.
5
Assessing a local improvement
Properties benefiting from a local improvement are
assessed in a fair and equitable manner, according to
provisions in the Municipal Government Act. The cost of
a local improvement may be assessed against
• properties that abut the work
• properties that don’t abut the work but benefit from it
• both of the above.
NOTE: No properties are exempt from local
improvements. City-owned properties are assessed in the
same manner as privately owned properties.
Assessing residential
properties
Properties abutting a local improvement are assessed based
on assessable property frontage. In most cases, assessable
frontage is the same as actual frontage.
Frontage assessment
Properties abutting a local improvement “front” the work.
(Figure A illustrates a frontage assessment.)
Properties 25 through 31 are all charged for the local
improvement based on an assessable frontage of 15 metres.
6
Figure A
Local improvement
25 26 27 28 29 30 31
Figure B
Local improvement
7
Flankage assessment
For properties benefiting from the local improvement, but
not bordering or fronting the work, assessments are based
on 26.5 per cent of the property’s assessable frontage. This
is called a flankage assessment.
Flankage assessments may apply in cases of road paving and
the construction of new curb and gutter, and/or sidewalk
where none previously existed.
The 26.5 per cent rate, as approved by Council, ensures
equitable cost distribution among all benefiting property
owners. Flankage is assessed from one end of the block to
the other, or to a maximum distance of 305 metres.
Figures C, D and E illustrate flankage assessments.
Figure C
improvement
2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Figure D
Local improvement A
improvement B
12 13 14 15 16 17 18
8
In some instances, properties are assessed for both frontage
and flankage. In Figure D, properties 12 through 18
would be charged for local improvement A, based on an
assessable frontage of 15 metres. Each property would also
be charged flankage for local improvement B, based on
26.5 per cent of assessable frontage.
Example
Each property would be charged:
Local improvement A
Rate per metre x 15 metres = $__.
plus
Local improvement B
Rate per metre x 15 metres x 26.5% = $__.
Figure E
improvement B
improvement A
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
9
Assessing non-residential
properties
Non-residential property assessments are based on the
length of property abutting the local improvement.
Figure F:
Local
improvement
15m15m15m
15m 15m 15m 15m 30m
1
4 5 6 7 2
10
Annual cost
Other types of improvements, without uniform tax rates,
are assessed on the actual cost of the work. To calculate the
cost per metre for the project, the total cost of a project is
divided by the total assessable length of the project. The
cost for each property is then calculated by multiplying its
assessable length by the cost per metre.
Example
For project costs of $40,000 and total assessable length of
304.8 metres:
Cost per metre = $40,000 ÷ 304.8 = $131.23.
For a 15 metre lot, cost would be:
15 x $131.23 = $1968.45.
11
Paying for local improvements
Each property owner has two options for payment once
construction is completed.
A. a one time payment of the full levy (no interest is included)
B. annual payments that are included in your property tax
bill for the term of the bylaw (interest is included)
In the year following construction you, as an affected
property owner will be mailed a Local Improvement
Assessment Notice and a Payout Notice.
The Assessment Notice provides you with details, i.e. total
assessed size/length, term and interest rate. Note: interest
rates are fixed for the term of the bylaw.
The Payout Notice provides the total cost of the project,
as well as the amount for you to pay. If this payment is
made, no interest charges are applied.
If you choose not to make this payment, the charges are
automatically transferred annually to your property tax bill.
You may request a payout balance at any time during the
amortized period. Interest charges are included up to that
year only.
Note: Local improvement levies can be paid out in full at
any time during the amortization period. Once paid, the
interest charges are applied up to that year only. The
interest rate is fixed for the period that the local
improvement is amortized.
Example #1:
If your lane is paved and your property has an assessable
frontage of 15 metres, and the uniform tax rate per
assessable metre is $175.00, then the total payout cost
would be:
15 metres x $175.00 = $2,625.00.
If amortized at 51/4 per cent over 15 years, the annual
charge, including interest, would be $17.15 per metre.
The cost would then be:
15 metres x $17.15 = $257.25 per year
for 15 years or a total of $3,858.75.
12
Example #2:
For a double-driveway crossing improvement the total
cost of the project is $2,300.00. This is the total payout
amount.
If amortized at 51⁄4 per cent over 15 years, the annual
charge would be $225.35. The total cost over 15 years
would be $3,380.25.
13
For further information, please
contact The City of Calgary
Roads, Local Improvement
In Calgary, call 3-1-1
Outside Calgary, phone
403-268-2489
Email: ccweb@calgary.ca
For more information:
calgary.ca/roads 2009-0141
calgary.ca
call 3-1-1