In an annual rite of pre-spring, a Calgary committee voted in favour of a special tax bylaw to allow participating communities the chance to have enhanced levels of landscaping.

The bylaw, which came to Wednesday’s Community Development Committee meeting, allows homeowners in a community to band together to ask for higher property taxes to pay for additional landscaping services.

Allison Fifield with the City of Calgary Parks and Open Spaces unit said that the levy is used for services and activities beyond the city’s minimum standard. That could include mowing, trimming tree wells, shrubs, flowerbed maintenance, litter control or snow and ice removal.

“The special tax levy provides communities with the opportunity to collect funds to invest in landscaping, horticulture, beautification of their neighbourhood, and then enhancements increased pride in this community,” Fifield said.

“The special tax levies contribute to the overall organizational health of community partners by providing a mechanism for sustainable funding to deliver landscape maintenance services based on community priorities.”

Coun. Richard Pootmans, whose Ward 6 is home to two of the 12 subscribing communities, encouraged his colleagues to approve the motion saying that it adds value to the entire city.

“The only other points I would add is to reiterate what administration mentioned … this is a volunteer activity, and not only the beneficiaries are their neighbours, their community, their neighborhood, their community at large, but the city as a whole,” he said.

“It’s not often recognized that this does healthy things for the taxpayers as well. It maintains value of properties throughout the area, which is in the entire city interest as well.”

There are 26,845 properties included in the special tax levy areas.