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Waterloo tax increase to be phased in Waterloo residents may not feel the immediate effects of a regional tax hike, but they can rest assured a 6.6â€"perâ€"cent increase is on its way. "The impact is not really going to hit the public until the final tax bills are received in September," said Waterloo regional Coun. Sean Strickland. "But then I‘m sure we‘ll be getting a lot of calls." The local rate hike can be attributed to recent provinâ€" cial policy changes to threshold ratios which shift the tax burden from busiâ€" nesses and multiâ€"residential Tammy Hergott, viceâ€"chair of the Bereaved Families of Ontario organization, showed off some of the earrings for sale to Dianne Murray (back) and Lorenza Kempton at the group‘s giant yard sale held Saturday at the Adult Recreation Centre in Waterloo. By Anogea Baicey Chronicle Staff A little of everything buildings onto homeowners Locally, these changes will mean an increase of about $152 on the average homeowner‘s property tax bill. Strickland pointed out that while 40 per cent of the increase can be attributed to the cities and the region, the remaining 60 per cent can be directly linked to the province. That, he said, puts an unfair burden on the region to deal with the public repercussions from the hike. "Remember the $200 rebate cheques the provinâ€" cial government sent out last year?," Strickland explained. "Well this is the province‘s way of clawing them back. And that rebate was a oneâ€" time thing. These tax shifts are forever. "What the province has done is set up the municiâ€" pality to take all the heat for the changes made in properâ€" ty tax assessment." Strickland said it‘s the intention of the administraâ€" tion and finance committee at the region to develop a schedule to phase in the increase over a longer period of time. However, he said that process will be difficult if more shifts take place in the next few vears. "This is a significant increase, and it‘s just the start of the shifts," he said. "We‘ll really have to weigh all the variables before we ANDREA BAILEY PHOTO decide how the increase will be phased in." â€" But right now the most important thing is for the region to develop a commuâ€" nication strategy on how to deal with the backlash expected from the increase. "It‘s important for politiâ€" cians in the region to clearly communicate to the public why the tax increase is so much," Strickland said. PERENNIALS 1,000‘s to choose from o Rejuvenate your flower beds 2 or more with fragrance, colour & texture _ 25 or more reg. 14.99 _ SPECIAL 5 or more Large 12 for a rainbow of colour Newest varieties & oldâ€"time favourites * Alyssum * Petunias * Lobelia * Ageratum ...& many more 1541 Highland Rd. W.. Kitchener, Ont. 745â€"9876 Mon.â€"Fri.9â€"8; Sat. 9â€"8; Sun. 10â€"4 POTTED ROSE BUSHES 2 â€" 16" HANGING BASKETS & MIXED PLANTERS for fragrant summer bloom BEDDING PLANTS YORK NURSERY since 194 1 gallon staked _ just choose from 38 varieties DINNER ON DEMAND Your personal chef service includes: t# customized menus {t/ meal preparation t meal planning W cleanâ€"up W grocery shopping t special diets welcome CLEMATIS #1 Canadian Grown 1.29 Could your stress filled days use some stress free meals? (519) 893â€"3098 box of 4 just 1 l .99 12.99 .. 9 ecm pots M ) (May 2â€"13 only) 2.99 2275 2.49 ca ca