The mayor of Riverview says 2021 was certainly not without challenges but there were some successes.
Andrew LeBlanc believes he and the new council have been collaborating well together on various fronts.
“We had a record year for development in the town which was fantastic and I think we’re certainly poised to see that again. We had the opening of the new bridge and we’ve made a lot of progress on the new recreation complex.”
LeBlanc says the town has been bringing the community together to tackle various social issues including those which impact young people such as bullying and drug use.
Higher property assessment values posed a challenge for all communities in New Brunswick this year including the Town of Riverview.
LeBlanc says council tried to ease some of the burden on taxpayers.
‘We did see a four cent tax decrease for next year in our tax rate. Of course, we would have liked to have been able to do more. The municipality was also hit with a cut in our equalization grant from the province.”
LeBlanc notes about $1.1 million was cut which he says Riverview relies upon more than Moncton or Dieppe for example.
He adds businesses and residents have proven to be resilient after another pandemic year.
