MAYNOOTH: Hastings Highlands’ population is growing and municipal services will have to keep up. That as councillors scrutinized an asset management plan at a meeting on Wednesday, Sept. 21.
A report with the plan said the population of the northern Hastings County community rose to about 4,300 in 2021. That represents a 7.5 per cent increase from the population in 2016, when it was just over 4,000.
One councillor, Keith Buck, asked if population increases may overwhelm the municipality, as it cares for infrastructure, such as roads and bridges.
The report’s author, Eric St. Pierre of engineering firm D.M. Wills Associates, said increased population leads to increased tax revenue to pay for more services. But, he warned that steady increases could quickly fill up the town’s landfill capacity.
He also said the number of seasonal residents in Hastings Highlands makes plans for paying for and maintaining infrastructure more complicated.
With the population increase, there’s also been a noticeable increase in building activity. The report said the municipality saw a spike in construction in 2021, with the recorded value of building permits up 43 per cent compared to 2019.