Proposed city budget would keep property taxes at 3.5% but increase and add fees for many services – Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg's preliminary four-year budget proposes raising multiple fees, introducing new garbage fees for apartments and condominiums, raising buses and some taxes and adding a new 911 renewal fee to help balance the books.

Mayor Scott Gillingham has previously warned that cost pressures will force tough spending decisions.

The city's $1.363 billion tax-supported operating budget keeps Gillingham's campaign promise to raise annual property taxes by 3.5 percent a year and end front-end payments that were part of the pledge.

The budget notes that the tax increase is relatively low, as “many cities” recently raised property taxes by up to 10 percent.

“We're working to improve the quality of service, but we need more revenue to fund those improvements, but we also have to balance those needs with the worsening economy in many ways,” Gillingham said.

“We must consider the needs and financial challenges of many Winnipeggers in their household budgets, and invest in our city's service needs and priorities.”

Revenue from the two-percentage-point increase will go toward road maintenance, which the city says will total $984 million over the next six years, while revenue from the 1.5-percentage-point increase will go into the operating budget through 2026. In 2027, all tax revenue increases will fund the city's operations.

The city plans to spend $138 million on road upgrades in 2024.

The owner of a home valued at $338,900 (excluding provincial school tax and frontage levy) will pay $69, from $1,967 to $2,036 this year.

Ahead of the budget, the mayor issued two separate news releases warning residents that intense spending pressures would force “difficult” budget decisions. At the time, Gillingham noted that inflation, rising labor costs and the financial shocks of the pandemic, as well as increases in Winnipeg's transit subsidies, would pose significant financial challenges.

The budget proposes raising various city fees to help cover the costs of inflation. Average growth is expected to be five percent in each of 2024 and 2025, followed by 2.5 percent in each of 2026 and 2027.

The new multifamily trash removal fee will start at $46 in 2025, and the trash removal fee for existing single-family homes will increase to $80 per residence in 2024 (up from $70 in 2023).

On Jan. 1, transit fares are scheduled to increase by 10 cents annually, but the low-income transit pass will be phased out until 2024.

The regular fare for 2024 is $3.25, and the monthly (low-income) WINNpass is $53.90.

If the budget is approved as it is, the city would add $911 per month to phone bills — both cell and landline — at registered Winnipeg addresses, which would cost $10 million to fund “next-generation” 911 service and the ability to send texts, videos and photos to users.

The payment is expected to begin July 1, but it is expected to require provincial approval. The proposal also calls for combining police and fire paramedic 911 services.

The budget includes a one percentage point increase in the lodging tax for hotel rooms and short-term rentals, from five percent to six percent. It also calls for 40 per cent of revenue from that tax, excluding short-term rental revenues, to be earmarked for future capital funding for the Winnipeg Convention Centre.

The plan calls for replacing or decommissioning 20 pools and closing Happyland Outdoor, Windsor Park Outdoor and Eldon Ross Indoor Pools, and spending $20 million on 10 new splash pads.

Despite the city's cash crunch, there are new investments.

The budget includes an additional $1.25 million in 2024 to reduce 311 wait times, as Gillingham previously promised.

The snow removal budget will increase from $36 million in 2023 to $52 million in 2027. It comes after the fund has been relatively stable and the city has exceeded its maintenance budget in 19 of the last 20 years.

The transit subsidy will increase from $102 million in 2023 to $133 million in 2027 and includes funds to add four new routes in Castlebury Meadows/Waterford Green, Aurora, Prairie Pointe and Sage Creek.

A new library will also be added in the northwest part of the city, and $5.9 million is planned for 2024 to improve library services, with some library hours extended and security improvements.

After a series of meetings and public delegations, the City Council is expected to vote on the final budget on March 20.

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Joyanna Pursaga
Reporter

Born and raised in Winnipeg, Joyanna loves to tell the stories of this city, especially when politics are involved. Joyanna became a city hall reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press in early 2020.

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