Update: 7:04 p.m.
91大黄鸭 city staff have reduced the proposed property tax increase for 2025 slightly, ending budget deliberations on Thursday (Dec. 5) at 4.34 per cent, down from the initial 4.36 per cent.
The decrease followed council鈥檚 decision to remove $50,000 allocated for a community events calendar from the budget.
Some councillors argued that the calendar would benefit small businesses, non-profits, and economic development. However, others felt the service was redundant. 鈥淲hen I think of marketing and advertising, I think of other organizations that we support like Tourism 91大黄鸭, Festivals 91大黄鸭, etc., and now we鈥檙e creeping into being the convener of events for the whole city,鈥� said Councillor Loyal Wooldridge.
Councillor Maxine DeHart supported the calendar, saying, 鈥淧eople want to hear this; they want to see what鈥檚 going on in our city.鈥�
City Manager Doug Gilchrist explained the proposal as a Netflix digital experience. "It鈥檚 AI-supported and would scrub other platforms and consolidate all the information.鈥�
Council approved moving other items higher on the funding priority list, including $251,000 for two bylaw officers and a bylaw services enforcement coordinator. Council also debated an extra $375,000 for snow clearing and ice control. While Councillor Gord Lovegrove expressed concerns about the amount, council opted to use reserve funds instead of taxation to cover the cost.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a huge chunk, and that concerns me. We do have other things that will come up,鈥� Lovegrove said.
Chief Financial Officer Joe Sass assured council there would be sufficient reserve funds for future needs.
Council retained $1.5 million in the budget for planning, designing, and constructing a new parkade on Osprey Avenue in South Pandosy. The parkade is intended to support increasing density in the area.
鈥淭he parking ratio is getting tighter in Pandosy,鈥� said Councillor Luke Stack. 鈥淲e want to deal with this before it becomes a pressure point, and we鈥檙e scrambling to figure out how to catch up and fix it.鈥�
Councillor Lovegrove opposed the full funding.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 see that we need a final design for developing a business case. I can see supporting $100,000 for development of a business case and a conceptual design.鈥�
The approved 4.34 per cent tax increase equates to an additional $108 for the average residential property, valued at $973,000. This adjustment brings the municipal portion of property taxes to an estimated $2,592.
Update: 2:27 p.m.
Parks
A $200,000 funding request for expanding 91大黄鸭's tree canopy coverage in the 2025 budget was declined after falling short of council support.
Councillor Gord Lovegrove urged council to prioritize the initiative, questioning its placement as a lower-priority item. 鈥淲e adopted the Sustainable Urban Forest Strategy; I don鈥檛 understand why this is a Priority 2 item,鈥� Lovegrove said.
The Sustainable Urban Forest Strategy (SUFS) outlines a 10-year planting plan, expanding the city鈥檚 tree partnership program, increasing street tree planting, enhancing urban tree services, expanding the bare-root nursery, and growing 91大黄鸭鈥檚 NeighbourWoods program.
Councillors Lovegrove and Charlie Hodge supported moving the initiative to a higher priority, but the proposal was rejected by the rest of council.
The city鈥檚 parks department also requested $600,000 to continue the median improvement program, which began in 2024 using grant funding. This program aims to replace hardscaped medians and boulevards with tree plantings, aligning with the SUFS.
91大黄鸭鈥檚 total parks budget for 2025 is set at $72.7 million.
Update: 1:49 p.m.
Transit
City staff have requested a $5.2 million increase to the transit budget to address anticipated changes in operations, including the adoption of new technology, transitioning to electric buses, and expanding the existing transit maintenance facility.
During the presentation, staff noted that rising fuel costs, lease fees, and administrative expenses have added to financial pressures. While increased ridership revenue is helping to offset some of these costs, additional funding is still needed to meet the demands.
If approved, the total transit budget for 2025 will rise to $44.4 million.
Update: 1:19 p.m.
Transportation
91大黄鸭鈥檚 transportation budget for 2025 is set at $108.4 million.
This includes $27.4 million for operational costs and $81 million for capital projects.
One of the larger expenditures is the KLO Bridge Replacement (with utilities) with $16.56 million to be spent next year. The total cost for the project is $18.36 million.
Council will also consider an additional $375,000 for snow clearing and ice control to be included in the budget later in the day.
鈥淲e have a bylaw that the public has to clear their sidewalks within 24 hours,鈥� Councillor Maxine DeHart noted. 鈥淚 think we should keep up with our bylaw.鈥�
Update: 10:52 a.m.
Fire Services
Adding four new firefighters to the city鈥檚 payroll in 2025 will cost $360,000.
This would increase to $477,000 in 2026, and $521,000 in 2027. Other requests include an assistant fire training officer at a cost of $99,000 in 2025, increasing to $176,000 in 2026 and ongoing.
Update: 10:39 a.m.
Policing Services
The city plans to add seven new RCMP officers in 2025 at a cost of $448,00.
This will increase to $654,800 in 2026. Other requests are for police services call support and an intelligence analyst at a total cost of $211,000 in 2025.
Staff told council the that RCMP Auxiliary Program will return next year with an expected focus on traffic enforcement as per council direction.
Update: 10:09 a.m.
Community Safety & Bylaw Services
A $100,000 funding request to support outdoor overnight sheltering along the Rail Trail faced opposition from Councillor Ron Cannan.
He argued that the city should seek support from the province instead. Cannan made a motion to remove the item from the budget, but it was defeated by the rest of council. The funding is set to increase to $200,000 in 2026 and $300,000 annually starting in 2027.
Priority one budget items include hiring a senior bylaw officer, purchasing a vehicle, and allocating $250,000 for an RCMP detachment police services resource review. Funds for the review would be drawn from the public safety levy.
Priority two items, such as hiring two additional bylaw officers, a bylaw services enforcement coordinator, and acquiring two vehicles, were deferred for further discussion later in the day.
Update: 9:13 a.m.
Budget deliberations are underway with city council and staff.
In his opening remarks, City Manager Doug Gilchrist told council that finance staff have delivered a responsive and responsible budget.
鈥淩esponsible in that it's been scrutinized through multiple filters within the organization, with an eye towards how services can be optimized, and many of them hopefully automated,鈥� he added.
Gilchrist also pointed to savings through the reallocation of funds that helped reduce the tax increase on property owners.
鈥淭his year, you will see there's $2.8 million of reallocated funds from existing budgets where we made improvements in automation, and that money's been used to reduce that taxation impact.鈥�
The total city budget for 2025 is $839 million.
Original
City council is diving into budget deliberations on Thursday, Dec. 5, a process expected to take most of the day.
91大黄鸭 residents are facing a proposed 4.36% tax increase for 2025. For the average residential property, valued at $973,000, this would mean an additional $108 compared to 2024, bringing the municipal portion of property taxes to approximately $2,592.
During Monday鈥檚 (Dec. 2) council meeting, Finance staff presented an overview of the city鈥檚 economic position and highlighted key factors shaping the financial plan.
"The City of 91大黄鸭 has fared well with our tax rate increases over the past couple of years," said Chief Financial Officer Joe Sass.
A report shared with council showed 91大黄鸭 has the lowest proposed tax increase, based on a two-year rolling average, among municipalities with similar populations.
Sass also addressed financial pressures affecting the city. 鈥淔or 2025, there鈥檚 about a seven per cent increase in the per-head cost of RCMP, and for transit, we鈥檙e looking at about a 21 per cent increase in cost for about a three per cent increase in service," he explained.
Additional challenges include inflation, higher costs from labour contracts, and expenses related to supporting the city's unsheltered population.
Over the next three years, the city plans to invest $1.1 billion in infrastructure projects outlined in its capital plan. Priority areas include fire and RCMP services, as well as transportation.
Capital News will provide updates throughout the day on council鈥檚 budget deliberations.
