City of Winnipeg releases budget for 2024

The City of Winnipeg released its second four-year balanced budget.

There are additional services available on the budget for Winnipeggers, but there are some price increases to make these services possible.

Mayor Scott Gillingham has kept a 3.5 percent property tax increase through 2027 in his four-year budget, keeping his campaign promise. Two percent of this increase will be used to invest in road maintenance.

Total payments will increase by five percent in 2024 and 2025, and then by 2.5 percent in 2026 and 2027.

Homeowners will have to pay more for garbage and recycling — from $70 to $80 — and a new $46 apartment and condo collection fee will be implemented in 2025.

Winnipeg Transit

Adult bus fares will begin increasing in annual $.10 jumps, but will freeze in 2024 for the low-income WINNpass.

Some of the potential changes to transit include an estimated $6.5 million upgrade to the automatic fare collection system; Safety shields for drivers in 2024 and four expanded routes in the city – Castlebury Meadows and Waterford Green, Aurora, Prairie Point and Sage Creek.

A public safety team will also be activated.

The City Council is directing transit to fully restore services by 2025.

The police

The city is considering implementing a new 911 fee for each city-registered phone. The cost is about $1 per phone per month and about $7.5 million per year. The money will be used to upgrade the 911 system, which could include sending text, photos and video to first responders. The city management notes that this is a similar experience in other cities of the country. The plan requires provincial approval.

The city is also in talks with the Winnipeg Police Service and Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service to consider merging their 911 systems.

Swimming pools and splash pad

Changes will also be made to the number of swimming pools and splash pads operating in the city. As part of the budget, the city plans to replace or decommission 20 Winnipeg swimming pools, close three pools and invest $20 million to create 10 new splash pads in Winnipeg.

The civil service will also be asked to report in the fall of 2027 to provide a multi-year review of the Kinsmen Sherbrook Pool. The city seeks information on pool usage, annual revenue and operating costs.

A wooden roof

In the four-year budget, the city intends to increase the forestry budget by 45 percent. The increase will help the city meet its cutting goals more quickly, and will provide more funding to support the accelerated greening strategy in 2026 and 2027.

Libraries

A new library is planned for the northwest part of the city, and funding from the budget will allow for similar opening hours and increased library security for Winnipeg's libraries.

Other budget expenditures

The city plans to increase its snow removal budget by about 40 percent over the next four years. The reason for the projected increase is to create an appropriate budget from the outset, as the city regularly goes over budget during snow removal.

Riverbank stabilization is also mentioned in the budget, and the city hopes to spend $3 million a year on the work.

The hotel tax will rise by one percentage point to six percent. The money will be used to fund beautification projects, and a portion will be used for capital improvements at the convention center.

The city is also projecting another $500,000 into the green cart program. The money will be used for the first step of the project and consulting support in 2024.