As the Township of Tiny moves forward with its brand-new administration facility, the project is being met with fierce pushback from the community. Mayor David Evans, along with the rest of his council, officially broke ground on the facility Friday morning. The total cost of the project could push more than $28 million that taxpayers would be on the hook for. Nearly 100 people gathered outside the construction site to protest the project, while township officials marked the milestone. Activist Karen Zulynik was at the demonstration and said affordability and quality of life are top of mind. “The majority of people that live here full time are retired and on limited incomes,” said Zulynik. “So they cannot afford the escalating taxes, so I really don’t know. It’s a scary time for us in Tiny.” The demonstration grew tense at times, with protesters surrounding vehicles entering and exiting the site. An incident occurred that resulted in one person being taken to hospital with what were described as minor injuries. Despite residents not approving of the new building, Evans said majority of the population thinks otherwise. “The vast majority of people in the Township of Tiny want to see a community that grows, that sustains itself and makes itself better,” the mayor said. The groundbreaking ceremony was for members of the media, along with building partners. Members of the public were not allowed on-site to see the progress. “We came here today because there’s a groundbreaking ceremony for this massive building that they want to build that has been opposed since we found out about it in 2023,” said Zulynik. “And it’s a nice gathering just for people to show. For every person that shows up here, that’s their opposition to this groundbreaking ceremony and this project going ahead.” Evans said the event was held to mark a milestone and was restricted due to safety regulations. “Due to regulations with the Ministry of Labour and to protect the safety of our citizens,” said Evans. “Again, this was a special instance that we took as an opportunity for a milestone event and we will be providing video updates as we have in the past.” He also addressed the crowd gathered outside the construction site. “I would ask them to look in the better interest of not just themselves, but of the community as a whole, and realize that this is an investment in long term stability, financial responsibility and maintaining the community that we have,” the mayor said. “They’re a part of the community and I am open to them having a differing opinion. That’s fine.” Despite council approving the project, not all are on board. Council member David Brunelle has made it clear that he has accepted the decision of council to move forward with the project but said there were more financially responsible ways to address the idea of an administration building. “We must certainly look at some ways to get some funds back from public lands, from this new public building to mitigate the expense,” said Brunelle. “That’s what people are worried about, so many people are on fixed incomes.” Brunelle added many people move to the township for affordability reasons and retirement. “The largest demographic of our municipality is, 65 plus and a lot more on fixed incomes. I’ve spoken to many, many people and they don’t want their taxes to go up,” said Brunelle. “They move to Tiny because of the low tax rate. They can build a dream home, retire and live in peace.” Brunelle confirmed the budget for the building is $28 million adding interests incurred could push the project closer to $50 million. “We are allowed to borrow 28 (million). That’s for the cost of the building and then there’s financing cost of that which, which over the 30 years will probably be approximately 22 million… Rough numbers,” said Brunelle. Evans is unable to confirm any numbers at this time. “At this present time there’s no public statement, our estimate is still being investigated, so I can’t speak to the final costs,” said Evans. Town officials are hoping to have foundation for the building complete before the winter season approaches. Outside the site, protesters said they’re still hoping for a different outcome. “We’ve (the township) spent a lot of money just getting this road in and going this far,” said Zulynik. “By the time the election comes, they would just like to feel if the foundation’s poured, just fill it in and forget that this ever happened and go back to square one and renovate (the current building).” The new administration facility is expected to be completed by 2027.
