Boissevain-Morton council has approved a new budget and expenditures will run around $5.3 million.

Head of Council Judy Swanson says it’s always a challenge keeping any tax increase to a minimum while working to maintain and improve services in the community.

“There’s a slight increase of 2.9 per cent. Every year we do some soul searching and we take several meeting going over the budget and what all is involved in it. At the end of the day we have to either scrap projects or defer them for another year or go ahead. With our budget transportation and roads are always the big line item and that’s just the way it and will continue to be into the future.”

Swanson said another challenge for this budget was the snow clearing. This past winter generated a lot of expense because of the harsh and long winter.

“We have to run a balanced budget so anytime other governments don’t increase out budget items we have to make up the difference for any cost increases” said Judy Swanson.

“Gravel on the roads and street work in town remain priorities. We also have water and sewer under the streets that has to be upgraded. One of the things we decided this year was we need shut off valves in the quadrants in town. We don’t it now and if you have to shut off the water you have to shut down the entire community and that isn’t good. So that’s a project we’re hoping to do this year.”

Swanson says her council is also looking at rural water. She says they’re working with Double Diamond to have access for water for farmers.

“We doing some road upgrades but other than that nothing too huge expect of curse building a new swimming pool.”