‘Give tax breaks to village being lost to the sea’
RESIDENTS of a “doomed” Gwynedd village should receive council tax breaks, it has been suggested, amid claims that house prices have already fallen by a third.
A shoreline management plan has warned that Fairbourne will be lost to the sea from 2055, with public bodies preparing for a “managed retreat” where all residents and amenities would be moved further inland.
But warning that the planned “decommissioning” is already having a devastating impact on villagers, calls have been made in the Gwynedd council chamber for residents to pay less council tax to reflect the tumbling value of their homes.
In Caernarfon on Thursday a full council meeting approved the proposed 3.9% council tax rise as part of the £261,837,750 budget for 2020/21.
But bringing up the issue of Fairbourne, the local councillor asked officers to raise the plight of her constituents with the Valuation Office.
“Fairbourne has almost become what is known globally as the doomed village but it’s quite ironic that given the recent floods across Wales, that Fairbourne was bone dry,” said Cllr Louise Hughes.
“But the impact of the plan has meant that properties in Fairbourne have lost almost a third of their values and the community council is angry and frustrated that council tax is continuing to go up.
“On behalf of residents, I would request they get a reduction.”
In response, chief executive Dilwyn Williams said: “The only way you could get a reduced council tax would be for the valuer to look again at the bands. What we can do is ask the district valuer to look again.”