Mono councillors got out their pencils Tuesday night and started chipping away at the 2010 draft municipal budget with the aim of having no tax increase for the upcoming year.

The major adjustments were a decision to go ahead with the paving and necessary infrastructure upgrades to Five Sideroad between Airport Road and Mono-Adjala Townline, and not to do the same for 20 Sideroad between the same two points.

The 5 Sideroad project, which had been deferred in the 2009 municipal budget, is budgeted at $1.2 million, while the work on 20 Sideroad is expected to cost $1.28 million.

It is anticipated that the cost of the 5 Sideroad project can be partially financed by allocating about $500,000 that's available in a federal gas tax reserve.

The "gas tax" is a portion of the GST charged at the gasoline pumps that is distributed to municipalities across the country. The aim is to allow municipalities to have the necessary funds to pay for major infrastructure projects, particularly roads.

"It allows for roads to be properly widened and reconstructed, as well as paved," explained town treasurer Les Halucha.

Mr. Halucha said that the need for Five Sideroad reconstruction was partly necessitated by the wear and tear put on the road by population growth in the area. Therefore, he said, the town would be justified if it also put money from development charges into the project.

After cutting the 20 Sideroad spending, council agreed to a suggestion by Councillor Laura Ryan that $50,000 be put back in the budget to ensure that the proper engineering work is done on that project.

Ms. Ryan said that the town would be more qualified to receive federal and/or provincial funding if such preparatory work was completed and the actual physical work was ready to proceed.

Councillors had come into the meeting needing to cut $2.27 million in spending to bar a tax increase for the third consecutive year. When all was said and done Tuesday night, they had cut that figure down to just over $1 million.

Councillor Jean Castel, who directed the town to cut his salary in 2009 to help cut municipal costs, made a similar gesture Tuesday night. This time, he wanted to give up his salary but, instead of having it struck from the budget, he asked that it be donated to The Door and Choices Youth Shelter.

Council chose not to act on Mr. Castel's request until it could determine what response such a move would receive from the Canada Revenue Agency.

Other budget cuts included not contributing $25,000 from the capital budget to the construction of bridges for the local trail system. Rather, it was decided that the money be taken from reserves intended for such purposes.

Other cuts included $6,000 shaved from the economic development committee's budget, as well as some cuts to the parks and recreation budget.

In an interview Wednesday, Mono Mayor Lorie Haddock conceded that council was more dependent on dipping into reserves this year to meet its zeroincrease goals, than it had been in previous years.

She pointed out, however, that the purpose of reserves is that money be put aside in more prosperous times to allow a municipality to weather the leaner times. And 2010, Mayor Haddock said, certainly qualifies as being a lean economic time.

Town council has set a flexible deadline of Nov. 24 to finalize the budget and will continue deliberations at its next public meeting on that date.